


Our Kid (Drarry)

by Lilytat



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Angst, Angst with a Happy Ending, Drarry, F/F, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, Happy Ending, Harry Potter - Freeform, Harry Potter Next Generation, Harry Potter future, M/M, Not Harry Potter and the Cursed Child Compliant, Slow Burn
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-12-29
Updated: 2017-02-24
Packaged: 2018-09-13 04:57:05
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 22
Words: 60,941
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9107566
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Lilytat/pseuds/Lilytat
Summary: *COMPLETED*Harry wasn’t ready. He just wasn’t. Only three years after the war, he had just gotten an acceptable apartment with Ginny and they had just settled into their new lives. It was too soon. Couldn't he just have a break for a few years? Please! He wasn’t ready.Draco Malfoy wasn’t ready, either. He’d spent the last two years competing with Potter. Being put on trial as a suspected Death Eater hadn’t helped him much either, seeing as he hadn’t been able to go back and finish his last year at Hogwarts, unlike Potter. Potter, who finished school and quickly skipped most if not all of auror training and went straight into the field. Potter, who found a girl, got an apartment, and got engaged before Draco had even gotten out of bed. Potter, who was already better than him. And now, Potter was the bloody fool Draco had to raise a kid with. Well, if Draco was going to do something better than Potter, it might as well be parenting.





	1. Chapter One: The News

Harry sighed as he rounded up the stairs to his apartment. It was on the fourth floor, and the elevator was out of business again. This would be something he’d have to get used to. Despite all of the pictures and decorations he and Ginny had put up, the apartment still didn’t feel like home. It was in the perfect location- near enough to a Ministry entrance that he only had to walk two blocks and Ginny worked from the small office in the back of the apartment. But it just didn’t feel right. 

“Oh, Harry! You’re home!” Ginny said, smiling lightly as Harry opened the door. She slid her chair out the door of her office and into the kitchen, where Harry stood. “How was work?” She asked in a chipper voice. 

“Same old,” he said, hanging up his coat and leaning down to kiss her forehead. “Malfoy only sneered at me twice today.” 

Ginny laughed. “Give the man a break, Harry!” 

“He was a Death Eater! He as good as killed Dumbledore! He was sentenced not guilty just a year ago, and now I’m supposed to be working with him? We can’t even look at each other without scowling! Trust me, Ginny, the feeling is mutual.” 

She rolled her eyes. “Has anyone ever told you that you’re absolutely wonderful at holding grudges?” She asked. Harry smiled back. “What do you want to do for dinner? Want to get take-out? I heard there’s a new sushi place three blocks away. Want to try that?” She asked, rolling her chair back into her office and typing a few things before looking up at him. 

Harry paused for a moment. His thoughts were still on Malfoy. He make Harry so mad. He was a Death Eater, and Harry knew it! He had proof! How could he be let go that quickly,  and then offered a job as an auror? It baffled Harry. The only excuse he could think of was that someone in the Ministry was also a Death Eater and pulled some strings to let Draco in. Maybe his mother bought him a job. Whatever it was, it made Harry furious. 

“Harry!” Ginny shouted. 

“Oh, sorry. Yeah, that sounds good. As long as you’re okay with picking it up. I don’t really feel like leaving the house today.” 

She smiled. “Of course. I need to get out of this apartment. I haven’t moved all  day! Ugh, the Prophet wants me to write two three page articles by Friday. There’s nothing to write them on! Nothing’s happened. So naturally, I decided to write about the upcoming Quidditch match- Chudley Cannons vs Puddlemere United. Cannons have my money, of course. Puddlemere been a bit rubbish this season,” she rambled. 

“No way, they’ve just gotten that new seeker, haven’t they? What’s-his-name Michaels?” Harry asked, shaking his thought on Malfoy away. 

“Brandon Michaels, yeah,” Ginny said. “But he’s terrible. I was watching some of his plays the other day- doesn’t know his left from his rights. They just wanted a full team if you ask me. Maybe he was the only one to try out. Come here and order, I’m starving,” she said, pulling up a menu on her laptop. 

Harry ordered the most cooked sushi roll he could find and changed into comfortable clothes as Ginny went to pick it up. He sat on his couch, looking around. There wasn’t much to do in this old apartment. They had a television, but there was never anything on. Aside from that, it was pretty dull. Ginny kept saying it was only temporary and that after the wedding, they’d move into a bigger home. Something nicer. For now, they’d have to make do. 

Suddenly, his boredom was disturbed by a dusty brown owl pecking furiously at his window, causing little tiny cracks with its small, sharp beak. 

“Oi! We’re renting this place!” Harry shouted, leaping up to let the owl in. “ _ Reparo, _ ” he muttered at the glass, which slowly healed. The owl seated itself on Harry’s shoulder and patiently stuck its leg in Harry’s face, showing him the letter tied to it. “Yes, I see it, thanks,” Harry grumbled, spitting feathers out of his mouth. He took the letter and set the owl down in the windowsill. “You can go now, I suppose,” he spat. The owl blinked at him and pooped on the floor before taking flight. 

Harry rolled his eyes, telling himself he’d take care of it later, before opening the letter.

 

_ Dear Mr. Potter, _

_ On the evening of June 17th at 5:12 PM, Andromeda Tonks unfortunately passed away.  We are very sorry to inform you of this loss.  _

_ The funeral will be help June 20th at noon, please make it in your best interest to attend.  _

_ Additionally, we would like to meet with you as soon as possible to discuss the guardianship of your Godson, Theodore Lupin. Please meet with us tomorrow, June 18th at 9:00 AM. You will find us located in Ministry office 1029, Level 3. Please send an owl immediately with your response. _

_ Sincerely,  _

_ Notoria Gillings, Head of wizard-child services  _

Harry’s heart stopped for a moment. Andromeda Tonks was dead? It wasn’t quite processing. He read the letter over several times. 

There was a knock at the door. “Harry!” Ginny called. “I don’t have enough arms, could you open the door please!” She shouted. He quickly reached over and opened the door, the letter still in his hand. This couldn’t be happening. “Than- what’s wrong?” Ginny asked, sitting the food on the counter. 

“Andromeda Tonks- Tonks’ mother- is dead. They want me to… to go discuss the custody of Teddy,” he said, frowning. He handing her the letter. She read it over several times, too. 

“Okay,” she finally said. “Okay. Okay. Send an owl saying you’ll be there and then send an owl to Glacia saying you won’t be able to come into work tomorrow.” Salvia Glacia was Harry’s boss and mentor. She was the toughest lady he had ever known. She was strict, strong, and powerful, but she got the job done. She had never had a failed mission. Harry doubted she’d show him any form of sympathy. “Go meet with this lady, Notoria Gillings, and talk to her. It’s not the end of the world,” Ginny said, but her hands were shaking a little. 

“Yes it is!” Harry shouted. “We can’t handle a child! We can’t even handle a houseplant!” He said, pointing to the slightly wilted bush on the other side of the room. 

“Plants don’t cry when they need to be watered, they just die! I’m pretty sure Teddy will let us know if he gets hungry!” Ginny said. “We’ve babysat him before, it’s not too bad!” 

“Yeah, for a few days at most! We both work full time, we live in a tiny apartment, we can’t have a kid! I’m not ready!” Harry yelled. 

Ginny took his hands. “Hey. It’s going to be okay. We’ll make it work. They might not even want you to take him. The only way for you to know is for you to go to that meeting tomorrow. So write them to say you’re going, tell Glacia you’re not going to be in tomorrow, and I’ll get dinner ready. Okay?” She asked. 

Harry huffed and dropped her hands, but proceeded to get out a quill and some parchment. 


	2. Chapter Two: For Teddy

“It’s going to be okay,” Ginny said one last time as she watched Harry leave the door. He highly doubted it.  
He followed the same path he always did to work. He wandered into the so called ‘public restroom’ that a muggle would never enter and made like he was just going to use the bathroom when he climbed into the toilet. If there was one thing to make him smile on a day like this, it was climbing into a toilet. For some reason, it made him think of his best friend, Ron Weasley. They’d have a lot to talk about at their weekly dinner date this Friday. Harry flushed himself down the toilet and appeared in the Ministry of Magic building. He wandered around to find an elevator with space and climbed in.  
“Morning, Mr. Potter,” the bellhop chirped. “You’re late this morning! Glacia isn’t going to be pleased, now is she?” He asked with a giggled.  
Harry gave him a polite smile. “Actually, I’m headed to the office of Notoria Gillings on level 3, I believe.”  
The bellhop gave him a puzzled look. “Isn’t she the head of child services or something?” He asked, pushing the ‘level 3’ button on the elevator. “Excuse me, Mr. Potter, but I wasn’t aware you had any children! Everything alright?”  
“I suppose so. My godson’s grandmother has just passed away. I believe I might have custody of him now,” Harry said. The idea made his stomach do a flip.  
“Oh, I’m terribly sorry for your loss,” the bellhop commented. He was silent the rest of the way down.  
When they reached level 3, Harry said goodbye to the bellhop and stepped off of the elevator. The auror office was on level 2, so he hardly ever had to come this way. It took him several minutes of consulting the directory to find Gillings’ office and he wandered down the corridor. He eventually found a large, important-looking door that said ‘Gillings- Head of Wizard-Child Services’ in swirling gold letters. Harry’s hand began to shake again as he knocked on the door.  
“Please enter,” a voice answered.  
The door handle slowly turned itself and Harry wandered into the office. It wasn’t very big, much it was much bigger than his office, which was nothing more than a little cube. There floor was covered in a thick lush yellow carpet, and the entire office was much brighter and happier than the rest of the Ministry. The shelves on the walls were covered in children’s toys and books. Gillings’ desk was pushed against the back wall with two very stiff-looking plastic chairs clearly made for children in front of it.  
“Ah, Mr. Potter,” Gillings said, giving a very friendly smile. She reminded him a bit of a school teacher. “So glad you could join me, though on some very unfortunate circumstances.”  
“The pleasure is mine,” Harry said politely, shaking her hand and attempting to take a seat in one of the chairs. It realized his struggle, however, and quickly grew to fit him better. It still wasn’t very comfortable.  
“We will begin in a moment. We must wait for one other person. He mentioned he might be a bit late,” Gillings said, her voice trailing off a bit. “In the meantime, please, feel free to entertain yourself with anything you can find in my office,” she said with a wave of her hand.  
Harry absent-mindedly began to fiddle with several Legos sitting on the edge of her desk.  
Before he was ready, the large door flew open once more and a very frazzled looking blonde man came in. He had very light grey eyes and even lighter hair. His robes were the same deep brown auror robes Harry had to wear. And his face was all too familiar to Harry.  
Gillings smiled. “Welcome, Mr. Malfoy. Now we may begin-”  
“Malfoy?” Harry demanded. “What are you doing here?”  
“I could ask you the same thing, Potter,” Malfoy hissed.  
“Now, now, boys,” Gillings said in a voice similar to one a parent would use to soothe two fighting children. Draco snarled and Harry crossed his arms. “We’re here to have a professional discussion. I notice you two have already met,” she said with a warm smile. The men refused to look at one another. “As you both know, Mrs. Andromeda Tonks, may she rest in peace, passed away yesterday. She was the caretaker of Theodore Lupin, son of Nymphadora Tonks and Remus Lupin, who both have deceased.” Harry’s heart gave a big yank. He didn’t want to think about it. “Now, it seems, we have come across a problem. Nymphadora Tonks and Remus Lupin named Harry Potter as their son’s Godfather. Neither of them had a chance to write a will, but Andromeda Tonks took Theodore into her custody. However, she did have a will. In that will, she stated that the custody of Theodore should stay in the family and transfer over to Draco Malfoy, Nymphadora’s cousin.”  
“No!” Harry shouted. “His family disowned them! He’s never met Teddy, or Tonks, for that matter!”  
“Yes, I have, Potter. Now please sit down, you’re making a scene,” Draco growled. Harry hadn’t realized that he was standing. “Excuse me, Ms. Gillings, but I don’t see the problem here. The will states that I should take over as Theodore’s guardian, so I shall.”  
Gillings gave another warm smile. “Yes, but you see, Mr and Mrs. Lupin named Mr. Potter as their son’s godfather, therefore implying that they’d like him to gain custody over their son. And, as he so kindly explained, your family has not been in contact with the Tonks family for a great number of years. This is, of course, assuming that you both would like to take the child.”  
Harry didn’t want a kid. He loved Teddy, but he just wasn’t ready. Then again, the only other option seemed to be giving him to Malfoy. “Of course I’d like to take him,” Harry said, a little too quickly.  
“As would I,” Draco said with an unhappy glare.  
“Yes. So the only clear option I see would be for you two to have joint custody over the boy,” Gillings said.  
“What? Joint custody?” Harry shouted. “Why can’t we ask Teddy? See who he’d rather have as a guardian! This is ridiculous! That man is a Death Eater, he can’t have a kid!”  
Gillings suddenly frowned. “Now, Mr. Potter, that is a very serious accusation! I’ll have you know that we did very thorough background checks on both of you before we determined the best way to handle this situation, and both of you were pronounced able to care for a child. Also, Teddy is three. He’s not legally old enough to make that sort of decision on his own. Trust me, Mr. Potter, this is the only way.”  
“Pardon me, Ms. Gillings, but what is involved in having joint custody?” Draco asked. His mind was racing. Would he have to live with Potter? He’d have to move out of his mother’s mansion, that was for sure. He wouldn’t raise a child in the home where people had been tortured and killed. No. What would his parents say? Well- his mother. His father was sentenced to life in Azkaban. Narcissa hadn’t realized Draco left an hour late for work. She didn’t realize much these days.  
The polite smile returned to her face. Draco felt reasonably satisfied. Harry was still seething with rage. “You two under no circumstances will be forced to live together, but it’s highly advised. We’d like Theodore to have the most… whole… family he can,” she said. She looked at the two men, who still wouldn’t acknowledge each other. “Clearly, that will be an issue for you two, so there are other ways we can determine custody. For example, Mr. Potter can have him for one week and Mr. Malfoy the other. Or one of you could take him on weekdays and the other on weekends. It’s up to you two. If you two need help with the decision making process, we’d be glad to help you.” It was clear they’d need help with the decision making process.  
“Where’s Teddy?” Harry demanded.  
“He’s playing in the other room at the moment. Would you like me to invite him in?” She asked.  
“Yes, please,” Harry and Draco said at the same time. They scowled at each other.  
“Wonderful. It will be just a moment,” she said, standing to leave.  
“So, what do you want to do about this, Potter?” Draco asked as soon as she was out the door.  
Harry refused to make eye contact with him. He looked at his tie. His hair. His chin. Anything but his eyes. “I get him every day but you get him once a month,” Harry finally stated. This seemed perfectly fair to him. Teddy was his godson, after all.  
Draco rolled his eyes. “Be reasonable, Potter. I don’t want to be in this situation anymore than you do. We’ve got to be fair.”  
“That is fair! I care about him more than you do!”  
Draco growled. “You have no idea how much I care about that child. All those days Andromeda was sick and you were off working, do you know who cared for him? I did. She called me when she had no one else to call! She trusted me! I didn’t become an auror until I knew she was better and could take care of him on his own. I think it’s safe to say I know him better than you do!”  
“I babysit him all the time! His parents were two of the best people in my life!”  
“He’s not his parents!”  
The door opened again and a little 3-year-old boy with bright blue hair toddled in. “Uncle Harry! Uncle Draco!” He cooed, running to hug each man respectively. “Are you going to take care of me?”  
Harry lifted him onto his knee and grinned. “Of course, kiddo! Are you excited to come live with me?”  
“Are you excited to come live with me?” Draco asked, taking the child out of Harry’s arms.  
“Yeah!” Teddy cheered.  
“So I take it you haven’t decided how to split the custody?” Gillings said, her grin fading as she sat down behind her desk again. Neither of the men responded. “Teddy, I have to talk to Harry and Draco for a moment, so why don’t you play with something in here?” She offered. Teddy climbed off of Draco’s lap and began to play with a pink race car he found on the ground. “What would you like to do?” She asked, her eyes still on the little boy.  
“I think we should split it 50/50, right down the middle,” Draco said, wringing his hands in his lap. Somehow, seeing Teddy made this much more real. He could fight in a war. He could finish auror training. He would withstand months of people accusing him of being a murderer. But he wasn’t sure if he could handle a child.  
Gillings nodded. “I agree, I think that’s the best way to do it. Mr. Potter, your thoughts?”  
Harry wasn’t happy about this. “May I take a day to think about it?” He asked.  
“No, Potter. You might be the ‘famous Harry Potter’ who can take days off whenever he pleases, but I’ve got to know as soon as possible so I can do what I need to do,” Draco said. “Unlike some of us, I have a job.”  
“I have a job, Malfoy! And it’s a lot harder than yours!”  
“Potter, we literally have the same job! We have the same boss and everything!” Draco spat. “Now do we split it 50/50 or do I get more custody than you?”  
Harry folded his arms. “50/50. We can trade off every week.”  
“Excellent. When can you take him?” Gillings asked, looking from man to man. Neither of them noticed, they were too busy glaring at each other.  
“Tomorrow,” Harry said instantly.  
“Perfect,” Draco said. “I need some time to secure a space for him. We’ll trade off every Thursday. Deal?” He asked.  
Harry nodded. “Deal.”  
Gillings did not look like she thought it was a perfect deal. “Now, I’m going to encourage you two to spend time with him, all three of you,” she said, giving them a pointed look. “One day a week is all I’m asking. Go out to dinner together, go see a movie, just do something together one day a week. Can you do that for me?” She asked, folding her hands politely.  
“Fine,” Draco growled. Harry looked appalled. “For Teddy,” Draco insisted.  
They both looked the little blue-haired boy who was playing so peacefully with his car. “For Teddy,” Harry agreed.  
“Yes. Now just one more thing. I’m going to need you two to do an unbreakable vow,” she said with a small smile. “It’s just something we have all adoptive families do. For security reasons, you know.”  
“For Teddy,” Draco said again.  
“For Teddy,” Harry whispered.  
They looked each other in the eye and joined hands. Harry’s hands were a bit sweaty and shaky, while Draco’s were dry and blotchy, but neither man made any notice.  
“Do you vow to stick to your plan of trading Theodore Lupin off every week unless for some important reason, you must not?” Gillings asked.  
“Yes,” both men answered.  
“Do you vow to do what you think is best for Theodore Lupin?”  
“Yes.”  
“Do you vow to give full custody to the other if you find that you can not take care of Theodore?”  
“Yes.”  
Gillings smiled and tapped their hands with her wand. They glowed green for a moment before she pulled it away. “Excellent. Just sign here and you may leave. Mr. Potter, please stop by to pick Teddy up as you leave work tomorrow.”  
\--  
“You did _what_ with _who_?” Ginny shouted as soon as Harry told her what had happened.  
“I have to share custody with Malfoy!” He said again. “We’re going to have a lot to tell Ron and Hermione Friday night, huh?” He asked, leaning against the door frame of Ginny’s office.  
“Trust me, they already know,” Ginny muttered.  
“What do you mean, they already know?” Harry asked.  
“Well, I couldn’t just sit here and wait for you to tell me! I had to do something!” Ginny said. “So I wrote them. They won’t get it until tonight, I told the owl to leave it at their house. Ron said he and Hermione have both been working pretty late. He says he’d be surprised if Hermione wasn’t the Minister of magic within five years.”  
Harry shook his head. “Are we ready, Ginny?” He asked.  
“Of course we are!” She chirped. “At least this will give me something to write about. _Harry Potter and Ex-Death Eater Draco Malfoy Have a Son Together_? Right on the front page! People will talk about it for weeks!” She sang.  
Harry laughed. “Do that and I’m calling off the wedding,” he said, kissing her forehead. “I just can’t understand why Mrs. Tonks would chose Draco over me to put in her Will! I’m his godfather, aren’t I? Sure he’s watched him a couple times, but I’m his godfather! Lupin and Tonks wanted me!”  
Ginny shrugged. “Didn’t he say he took care of Teddy when she was sick? And he’s part of Draco’s family. There’s a special connection when it comes to family. Maybe she thought that giving Teddy to Draco could bring back some positivity to their bloodline,” she said. Harry thought of the Dursleys. He’d never give his child to any of them.  
“I just don’t get it,” Harry muttered. “Why would she trust Teddy with him?”  
“I don’t know, Harry, but there’s nothing you can do about it now.”  
Harry sighed. “You’re right.”  
She smiled. “Okay, I’ve got to get back to work. You should start getting the guest room ready.”  
“What do three-year-olds like?” Harry muttered to himself as he left the room. The apartment was in no way ready for a little kid. Last night’s empty wine bottle laid collecting dust on the coffee table, as well as the remains of dinner. Nothing was baby-proofed- did you even have to baby-proof anything for a three-year-old? “Ginny! I don’t know what to do!” He shouted.  
Ginny sighed. “Call my mum! Or Bill, he’s got a daughter Teddy’s age, doesn’t he? You’ll figure it out, love!” She called before going back to furiously typing away at her computer.  
Harry made a mental note to write to Bill and Mrs. Weasley as he began to clean up their filth.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello!!  
> I can't believe how many people seem to like this already!! It's been up for one day and it already has five kudos so thank you so so so much!!  
> I'm still trying to figure out how this website works, so if you have any tips, please tell me! Thanks a million!  
> Thank you for reading!  
> Lily


	3. Chapter Three: Astoria Greengrass

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Draco returns home to find Astoria Greengrass waiting. She begs him to marry her so she can be with the muggle woman she's fallen in love with. In return, she will provide Draco and Teddy with an apartment.

Draco, unlike some people, returned to work after the meeting with Gillings. He couldn’t quite afford to take the day off, especially if he needed to find an apartment to house Teddy within one week. It’d be a tight stretch for sure, but he could do it. Out of spite, if anything. If Potter thought he couldn’t be a good caretaker for Teddy, then he’d be the best caretaker in the world.   
“Malfoy!” Glacia snapped as she passed his cubicle. “Have you seen Potter at all today?” She asked.   
Draco lazily looked up from his paper work. “Yes, ma’am. He was just in a meeting with me. I believe he took the day off.”   
Glacia snarled. “Took the day off for one lousy meeting. He’s lucky he’s The Boy Who Lived. I make big money keeping him on the team. Feel like taking a mission for him?” She asked, waving around a thick manila folder. Contrary to popular belief, being an auror wasn’t just shooting bad guys with sticks. There was a lot of hunting down missing subjects and what not. Draco didn’t mind it, but he knew Potter loathed the paperwork.   
“Sure,” Draco sighed and picked up the folder.   
“Thanks, Malfoy. Take an extra fifteen minutes for lunch today!” Glacia said. She knew he wouldn’t need the extra fifteen minutes. He usually spent it working anyway.   
Life after the war wasn’t exactly as splendid for him as it had been for Potter. While Harry went back and finished his last year of school, Draco was being tried for being a Death Eater. It hadn’t helped that Potter had been a witness against him. Luckily, within a year, Draco was pronounced not guilty, but was under heavy Ministry watch. That was when Andromeda fell sick. While Harry was too busy proposing to his girlfriend, Draco was taking care of a one-year-old orphan and taking auror training classes. Classes, of course, which Potter happily was allowed to skip. A few months after that, he was finally allowed to be an auror. A feat Potter managed to accomplish within days.   
Draco took the folder in his hand and carefully opened it. There was a name across the top; Delano Cupperton. He was a missing ex-Death Eater that Draco was supposed to pull out of hiding and take into Ministry custody. Then, he’d have to participate in a trial and present his case as to why or why not Cupperton should be found guilty. It was a big ordeal, but Draco thought it made life interesting.   
He laid the folder aside. He had solved enough of these missing Death Eater cases, and having been one himself, to know that Cupperton was either dead or hiding in the mountains. Draco would deal with that later.   
Right now, he had to deal with the pressing matter; he was going to be a father in a week. Well- not a father… unless Teddy wanted him to be. The point was, he had a week to find an apartment and emotionally prepare himself. And to figure out how on Earth he was going to tell his mother he was raising a child with Harry Potter.   
He opened his laptop (a piece of muggle equipment that his father would be terribly insulted to hear he had, but was now a mandatory thing for any Ministry worker) and began to search for move-in ready apartments in the London area. Much to his displeasure, he found next to nothing. Nothing in his price range, that was. Eventually, after hours of searching, he finally found several that wouldn’t kill him to look at. He figured he’d go to visit them during his lunch break or something.   
That night, he left work much more stressed than usual.   
“Malfoy Manor,” he said, stepping into the bright green flames in the Ministry entrance hall. Soon, he wouldn’t have to be reminded of every crime he had ever committed when he was going home. Soon, he’d never have to go into that place ever again. His body folded in on itself as he was transported to the manor.   
“Draco! You’re home!’ Narcissa greeted him when he stepped through the fireplace in the sitting room. She wasn’t as pretty as she once had been. Grey hair had taken over her head. Her eyes had such large bags around them, she might have been a racoon. The parts of her face that weren’t sagging from wrinkles were bone thin. The stress of having her husband sent to Azkaban and her son nearly convicted of the same crime did not make her look any younger.   
“Hello, mother,” Draco said softly. He set his briefcase next to the fireplace and stepped down. “There’s something I think I should discuss with-”   
“Oh, not now, dear,” Narcissa hushed him. “We’re having a guest quite soon! Go tell the house elves that we’re ready.”   
“Guests?” Draco asked.   
“Yes, dear,” Narcissa said. She carefully removed his coat and hung it next to the chimney so he’d have it for work tomorrow morning. “A nice pure blooded girl is coming over to meet you. I’m sure you’ll like her. She’s such a pleasant lady. Her name is Miss Astoria Greengrass.”   
Draco groaned. “Mother, you don’t have to keep setting me up with people! I’m fine on my own!” He said.  
His mother smiled sweetly. “Yes, I know, I know. But you’re still living here, aren’t you? I just figured a lady might… persuade you to move out of the house. Start meeting new people, making new friends. That’s all.”   
“That’s actually what I wanted to talk to you about, mother,” Draco said. He didn’t sit on the couch. The couch in the sitting room was reserved for when they were having guests.   
“What is it dear?” She asked. “Make it quick, please. Astoria will be here any minute now.”   
“Well, do you remember Andromeda Tonks?” He asked. Of course she remembered her. She was her sister! Sure, Draco’s family had disowned Andromeda as soon as she married a man conceived from muggles, but she was family. And family was a big deal.   
“I remember my sister, Draco,” Narcissa said very quietly. “Tell me. Is she dead?”   
“You see-”   
“Is my sister dead, Draco?” She asked.   
Draco nodded. “Yes, mother. She’s dead. And she’s left her grandson Theodore Lupin to me. But Nymphadora Tonks and her husband left the boy to Harry Potter,” he explained quickly. “So, you see, now Potter and I have joint custody over the child. He gets him this week, and I have one week to find an apartment so I can take him.”   
Narcissa gasped. “Draco, I-” she paused. “We will discuss this later. After Astoria has left.”   
The doorbell rang, filling the entire manor with the sound of chimes. Draco rushed to answer it and put on his most charming smile. “Astoria Greengrass,” he said, inviting her in. He had to admit, she had aged well since the last time he saw her in the war three years ago. Her family didn’t really fight in it. They were unwilling to commit to the dark lord, so they fled. They were one of the very few known pureblood Slytherin families to do so.   
“Draco Malfoy,” she said with a small smile, taking his hand.   
“It’s been a while,” Draco commented, leading her into the sitting room. She was long and thin with hair the color of milk chocolate. She was strictly pretty, nothing particularly spectacular about her. Draco didn’t mind much. He knew no matter what happened, he’d be forced to marry her.   
“It certainly has,” Astoria said, sitting on the chair across from Draco.   
“Might I get you anything, Miss Greengrass?” He asked, beaconing a house elf over.   
She smiled and shook her head. “Don’t bother, Draco. We’re school friends! You can skip the pleasantries with me, I should think,” she said. “I will have a bit of water, though.”   
The house elf nodded and hurried away.   
“Miss Greengrass, how pleasant of you to come,” Narcissa said, coming into the room with a posture and elegance to her that Draco only saw when she was trying to bribe someone. She took Astoria’s hand and kissed the back of it. “I trust my son has been hospitable.”   
“Of course, Mrs. Malfoy,” Astoria said, standing to greet her.   
“Very well then. I’ll be upstairs,” Narcissa said with a pointed look at Draco. Draco knew this meant she would be going to bed. She had trouble staying awake these days. She sauntered out of the room and left Draco and Astoria to themselves.   
Astoria looked around the corner to be sure Narcissa was gone before leaning forward and taking Draco’s hands. “Listen, Draco, you have to help me out,” she whispered. “My family has been trying to marry me off to some pureblood guy for ages. No offence, but an ex-Death Eater wasn’t their first choice,” she said. Draco shrugged. “But this time I really need you to marry me. Like, really.”   
“Why?” Draco asked, slightly confused by the whole hand-holding thing that was going on. His hand still tingled a bit from holding Potter’s when they made the unbreakable vow.   
Astoria grinned. “Draco, can you keep a secret?” She asked.   
“I don’t see why not,” he commented anxiously.   
“I’m in love with a muggle,” Astoria whispered.   
Draco gasped. That was the biggest insult to pureblood families one could imagine. It was one thing to marry someone of muggle descent, but to marry a muggle! Unspeakable! He suddenly understood why she needed him to marry her. “I’ll do it,” he said.   
She shook her head. “You didn’t let me finish. I’m in love with a muggle girl,” she whispered. There it was. The kiss of death. “But no one can know, okay? She’s getting married to another muggle. He knows we’re together. But I need you to marry me to get my family off my back. They can never know.”   
Draco froze. “Why me?” He finally asked.   
“Because I knew you’d understand,” she said. “You’re the only other gay pureblood I know and-”   
“Wait! Astoria, I’m not gay,” Draco insisted.   
She laughed. “Sure you’re not. As if I’m going to pretend you weren’t hopelessly in love with Harry Potter for six years. Draco, the entire Slytherin house was very well aware. You aren’t hiding anything.”   
“I wasn’t!” The idea was vomit inducing. Him? In love with Potter? “Merlin’s beard, Astoria! I was never in love with Harry Potter,” he hissed.   
Astoria rolled her eyes. “Sure you weren’t. Draco, you talked about him nonstop! You were obsessed with him.”  
“I wasn’t! I can’t stand the sight of him!” He said. Astoria did not look convinced whatsoever. “I didn’t even remotely like Potter. He was such a prat! He tried to get me put in Azkaban! And now I have to raise a bloody child with him!”   
Her eyes grew to the size of saucers. “So you’re not gay, you were never in love with Harry Potter, and now you’re telling me you’re raising a child with him?” She asked.   
Draco sighed and leaned back. “Listen, it’s a really long story. He’s the godfather of my cousin’s son. Now, my cousin and her mom are both dead, so they couldn’t figure out whether the custody of the kid goes to me or to Potter, so we’re sharing custody. He gets this kid this week, I get him next week,” he explained. “The point is, I’m not, I never have been, and I never will be in love with Harry Potter.”   
Astoria took several seconds to think about this. “Whatever, Draco, it doesn’t matter. I’ll take care of the kid with you, whatever. Just marry me, please,” she begged.   
“Do you really love this girl?”  
“Yes, Draco, I really do,” Astoria said. “And I need you to help me.”   
“Why don’t you just elope with her?”   
Astoria laughed. “Draco, I wasn’t sorted into Gryffindor. I’m a coward. I could never give up my family and my life now, as much as I hate it. It’s much easier to lie. All I need from you is for you to say you’re my husband. That’s it. And let me be with this girl. We won’t get in your way, I promise. I’ll only be with her while you’re at work. I’ll help you take care of this kid. I’ll do anything! Just marry me!”   
Draco sighed. “Okay. Yes. I’ll marry you.”   
“Merlin- thank you so much, Draco!” She said, wrapping her arms around him.   
“But I could use a little help from you, too,” he said. Astoria pulled away and sat back down on her chair. “I get this kid next Thursday and I need an apartment before then. All of the people I know who could help me are dead or in Azkaban. Do you think you could pull some strings and get me an apartment?” He asked.   
She smiled. “You may not know this about me, but I’m a wonderful actress. I will be able to convince some people to give us anything we need. I’ll get you an apartment by Monday, I promise. Anything you need?”   
Draco grinned. “Let’s have at least three bedrooms, yeah? You, me, and Teddy. And maybe a playroom for Teddy. Two bathrooms, I’m thinking. And close to the Ministry, I’m an auror.”   
“You got it,” Astoria said. “And thank you so much.”   
“Not a problem,” Draco said. “I can’t wait to marry you.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello again!  
> So I just wanted to get one thing out of the way; there wont be any sex scenes in this fanfic. Sorry! I'm a gay female so you can see how writing M/M sex scenes wont really work out haha. But there will be fluff! Always fluff!   
> Thanks for reading!  
> Lily


	4. Chapter Four: Partners

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Harry and Draco are assigned a mission together at work. They're struggling to work together and be an adequate team as aurors and as parents.

In six hours, with the help of Mrs. Weasley and Bill, Harry and Ginny had made their shabby apartment a home for Teddy. As it would turn out, you do need to do some level of baby-proofing for a three-year-old. For example, a three-year-old should not be able to operate an oven. Or try to, for that matter. Luckily, there were charms for that. For the final test, Bill unleashed his three-year-old daughter Victoire on the apartment. Much to their luck, she only did minimal damage.  
“Congrats, little sister,” Bill said, slapping Ginny on the shoulder. “Who would think that the oldest Weasley and the youngest would have children the same age.”  
Ginny laughed and shook her head. “He’s Harry’s- not mine.”  
The idea still made Harry feel sick. Bill and Victoire left, leaving Ginny and Harry to themselves. They collapsed onto the couch in exhaustion. Yet another owl flew in and dumped a parosaul of toys and clothes on their laps.  
“Merlin’s saggy tit, how much stuff does this kid have?” Ginny cursed, closing her eyes.  
Harry laughed. “You’re going to have to start watching your language, young lady,” he scolded. “This is only half of it,” he said, holding up the small child’s clothes. “The other half is going to Malfoy.”  
Ginny took the clothes into her arms and got up to put them in Teddy’s room. Harry quietly watched her and put some of the toys away on the shelf. “When are you bringing him home?” She asked, reclining back down.  
Her fiance sat down after her, putting his legs in her lap. “After work tomorrow.”  
“Oh, good. I’m meeting with Luna for lunch,” she said. “Well, I’m off to bed. Check the papers tomorrow, I think my articles are going to be in them.” She kissed his head and stumbled into the bedroom.  
Harry remained on the couch for a bit, thinking. What was life going to be like with a kid? He wasn’t sure, but for once, maybe he was ready.  
\--  
Harry went to work like always the next morning, but this time, it was different. Like always, he flushed himself down a toilet. And like always, he took the elevator to the second level. He made his way to his cube and sat down. Surprisingly, there was no paperwork stacked up on his desk. This could mean one of two things. Either he was going on a field mission, or he had to give a presentation he forgot about.  
“Well, look who decided to show up this morning!” Glacia’s voice boomed.  
“Sorry, ma’am. I told you, there was a family emergency,” Harry said softly. Not many people scared him in this world, but Glacia certainly did. She was a tall, burly woman who wasn’t only twice as tall as Harry, but twice as thick, too. Harry guessed she was 300 lbs of pure muscle. Her head was almost completely shaved and she wore so much eyeliner that her wings were twice the length of her actual eye. She wore pantsuits that were at least one size too small- if not two- and had outrageous patterns on them. Today, it was teal with rose colored owls. She had a sneer that reminded Harry of Professor McGonagall, which perhaps explained why he respected her so much. She had a particular talent in working the newbies very hard, which explained why Ron left to go work at the joke shop with George halfway through his training. Harry, luckily, got to skip training.  
Glacia laughed. “Well, it seems Mr. Malfoy had the same family emergency, but he found it in his heart to come in yesterday!” She shouted. Malfoy sneered on the other side of the office. “So! I’ve got some work for you, Potter! You get to help Mr. Malfoy with the Cupperton case!”  
“Help Malfoy? Ma’am, isn’t there anything else-”  
“Nope, Mr. Potter, I’m afraid there’s nothing else for you to possibly do. You’ll just have to work with Mr. Malfoy,” Glacia said. “Now, off you go.”  
Draco gave Harry an evil grin as he walked over. “What, don’t want to work with me Potter? You’re going to have to learn to deal with it if you’re going to be my baby daddy.”  
“Merlin’s beard, Malfoy! Don’t ever say that again!”  
“Would you rather I say I’m having your son? We’re fathers, Potter!” Draco taunted.  
“I’d rather you not talk about it at all, in fact! Teddy’s not my son or your son. He’s Tonks and Lupin’s son. What put you in such a good mood anyway?” Harry hissed, pulling up a chair at Draco’s desk.  
Draco’s evil grin turned even wider. “For your information, Potter, I just got engaged.”  
Harry scoffed. “I have to say I’m surprised, Malfoy. I didn’t think you’d be able to find someone as evil and narcotic as you!” He shouted, teeth bared.  
“Boys! Less banter and more work!” Glacia yelled across the room. Her voice was so loud, the walls shook. The auror office was less of an office and more of a long hallway lined with cubicles and Glacia’s massive desk at the end. There were two conference rooms, but they were also shared with the Wizengamot, who inhabited the rest of level 2. The Ministry’s excuse for the bad auror office was that if the aurors were doing their jobs, they would rarely need to be in their cubicles. Clearly, they didn’t understand what aurors were.  
“Okay, Malfoy, what have we got?” Harry grumbled.  
Draco slapped the file onto the desk. “Mr. Delano Cupperton. Suspected ex-Death Eater on the loose,” Draco summarized. Because frankly, that was as far as he had gotten on the case.  
“Oh, good. So I’m sure you know him,” Harry spat.  
It was meant to be an insult, but Draco smiled. “Nope. Sorry, Potter, but I was way too high up to be acquaintanced with a peasant like Cupperton. He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named lived in my house, Potter. My house.”  
“Merlin’s beard, I can’t believe we’re raising a kid together,” Harry mumbled.  
Draco smirked. “So, I haven’t looked at any of this information yet, but we can assumed he’s been hiding up in the mountains like everyone else. That or he’s dead.”  
\--  
Harry’s day had been dreadful. Absolutely dreadful. Working alongside Malfoy not only tested his patience, but his will to live. They couldn’t be any more different. Malfoy liked to sit and review all of the information, writing out everything they needed and making lengthy plans before doing anything. Harry wanted to merely glance over everything, discuss a plan, and then execute it. He felt like a kid on a sugar high compared to collected and careful Draco. He was so slow, Harry thought. His light grey eyes had to pass over the paper at least 5 times for his tiny pea brain to comprehend it. He had to write everything down in his perfect handwriting, and then read it again! He even breathed slow! Harry nearly lost his mind. By the end of it, they had almost nothing done.  
Draco’s day had also been dreadful. Worse than Harry’s, at the very least. For starters, he was certain Potter would give him anxiety. Potter was always clicking a pen (Yes, Potter, he had pens. They aren’t some crazy muggle technology. Hogwarts only used quills for the aesthetic, most wizards used pens, Potter. Pens!) or tapping his fingers or doing something. He couldn’t sit still! The amount of times Potter ran his hand through his hair as if he was some big time movie star was enough to make anyone jump off a bridge. He never read anything, he just skimmed it and missed all of the details. And then- then- he had the nerve to write on Malfoy’s notes! Potter had terrible scrawling handwriting. And every time he wrote something down with his right hand, his left hand would twitch and he’d stop to look over at it. Admittedly, it was most likely because of the scars that read ‘I must not tell lies’ across the back of his hand, but Draco loathed it nonetheless. By the end of the day, Potter had clicked every pen in the auror office and Draco had done all of the work.  
They said goodbye, which was more of harry announcing he was leaving and then walking out the door than goodbye, and parted ways. Draco went to the fireplaces to take the floo network home, and Harry went to level 3 to pick up Teddy.  
“Uncle Harry!” Teddy shouted the second he saw him.  
“Hey, kiddo!” Harry said and scooped him into a hug. “You ready to come home with me?”  
“Yeah! We have to say goodbye to Miss Notoria first. She said so,” Teddy said, pulling Harry down the hallway to Gillings’ office. They opened the door to where Gillings sat quietly doing paperwork.  
“Hello, Mr. Potter,” she said sweetly. “Teddy is in your care now. I trust you’ll do the best you can to keep him safe. Don’t forget about your deal with Mr. Malfoy.”  
“I won’t, Miss Gillings. Thank you,” Harry said.  
She smiled and showed them to the door. Harry took Teddy out of the Ministry and held his hand as they walked to Harry’s apartment.  
“Bye, bye, Miss Notoria!” Teddy called as they walked away from the Ministry.  
Harry’s usual five minute walk took fifteen minutes, as Teddy wanted to look at every little thing they walked by. Eventually, Harry had to pick him up and carry him.  
“There are my boys!” Ginny sang when Harry opened the door.  
Together, they showed Teddy his bedroom and all of his toys. At 7:30, Harry read him a story and tucked him into bed. He quickly fell asleep.  
“What are we going to do tomorrow?” Harry whispered, joining Ginny on the couch.  
“I’ll watch him, but we’re going to need a babysitter during the day while I’m working. Maybe daycare. What are we going to do for our date night with Hermione and Ron tomorrow?” She asked.  
Harry shrugged. “We can invite them here. I don’t think they’ve seen him in a while,” he suggested.  
They spent the rest of the night figuring out how on Earth they’d be able to do this.  
Maybe being a parent wouldn’t be quite as hard as they thought.  
\--  
The next morning, Harry woke up to the sound of sobs. He threw the covers off and ran into Teddy’s room, which was right beside Harry and Ginny’s. He flipped on the lights to see Teddy standing up in his crib, crying.  
“Teddy! What’s wrong?” Harry asked, scooping him up and pacing into the room. Teddy stopped crying immediately and rested his head on Harry’s shoulder.  
“What’s happened? What’s going on?” Ginny asked, running in with her wand out.  
“Teddy is up now!” Teddy declared. It was as if he had never been crying in the first place “Teddy is done sleeping!”  
Harry sighed and took him out of the bedroom. “Go back to bed, Ginny. I got him,” he said, kissing Ginny on the cheek as he exited the room. He wandered into the kitchen and looked at the clock. 6:00 AM. Merlin’s beard, even the sun wasn’t up yet! “What’s the matter, Teddy bear? Why were you crying?” He asked, half-wandering half-dancing through the kitchen with the toddler on his hip.  
Teddy yawned. “Teddy is done sleeping,” he said.  
Harry sighed and put him down, so he was sitting on the counter. “You can’t cry like that when you want to get up again, okay? Well- you can for Uncle Draco. But not for Uncle Harry. Okay?” He asked. Teddy nodded. “Next time you wake up, just wait a little bit or play with some toys or something,” he said. “Now, what do you want for breakfast?”  
The toddler clapped his hands. “Breakfast!” He cheered.  
Harry put a finger to his lips. “Shhh! Sh, sh, sh! Auntie Ginny’s sleeping, so we have to be quiet, okay?”  
“Shhh!” Teddy whispered. “Breakfast.”  
“Much better. Do you want toast or cereal?” He asked.  
“Teddy have cereal,” Teddy said.  
Harry now had another problem. How was he going to prepare Teddy cereal without him running off? He couldn’t just leave him sitting on the counter, he’d fall. Harry didn’t even have a highchair for him! Ugh, he knew he had been forgetting something! Did three-year-olds need high chairs? He wasn’t sure how happy Bill would be if Harry called him at 6 AM, so he decided to wing it.  
“Okay, T-bear, you get to help Uncle Harry make cereal,” Harry finally announced, lifting the child off the counter and placing him on the ground. He took his hand and lead him over to the cabinet. “Frosty Bites or Rainbow Wheats?” Harry asked. But Teddy was already consumed with a doll he had found. “Rainbow Wheats it is. Don’t tell Auntie Ginny, these are her favorite,” he said, more to himself as he poured them their bowls.  
They decided to eat their Rainbow Wheats on the couch at the coffee table, seeing as Teddy couldn’t reach the actual table. Teddy chose a mind-numbing show about talking numbers for them to watch.  
“Hey, love, go get ready. I’ll take over,” Ginny yawned, rubbing her eyes.  
“Thanks,” Harry said, standing up and sliding past her.  
“So, what kind of tea do you drink? Oh, right. You don’t do tea, do you?” Harry heard Ginny saying as he wandered into the bedroom and shut the door.  
“Teddy! T - E - D - D - Y!” Teddy responded.  
Ginny yawned again. “Yes, I suppose that’s correct. Teddy does start with a T.”  
Harry chuckled to himself and started to get ready for work.  
\--  
“How is he?” Draco asked as soon as he found Harry in the office. “Did he sleep well? Did you have any problems with you? Did you read him any of the bedtime stories they sent you?”  
Harry yawned and rubbed his eyes. “Calm down, Malfoy, everything’s fine. He went to bed just fine. We had chicken nuggets for dinner and Rainbow Wheats for breakfast. He woke Ginny and I up at 6, he was crying, but it was only because he wanted to be taken out of his crib. We watched that show with the talking numbers.”  
“It’s called Numeral Pals, for your information, Potter,” Draco snarled. “So you still have him in a crib? I was thinking of getting him one of those toddler beds. You know, like the race car ones?”  
“I don’t care, Malfoy,” Harry snarled.  
Draco frowned and folded his arms. “Listen, Potter. I’m not doing this for you, I’m doing this for Teddy. He deserves a non-dysfunctional family, alright? Neither of us grew up in happy homes, did we? I don’t want him to go through the same! Like it or not, we’re parents now, Potter. We’ve got to communicate.”  
“Alright. Communicate with me. Have you got an apartment?”  
“Yes, I have. My fiance, Astoria Greengrass, found us a lovely place and she’s preparing it for him today!” Malfoy snarled. “So everything went okay? There’s nothing I should know?” He asked.  
Harry rolled his eyes and shuffled some papers. “Yes, Malfoy! He’s spending the day with Ginny today. We’re going to find a daycare or a sitter for him for when she has to work. The only thing was I never got a high chair for him, so we ate breakfast in front of the telly. Do you reckon he needs one?”  
Draco groaned. “Of course he needs a highchair, Potter! Have you read any parenting manual?”  
“No! Malfoy, I had a day’s notice on this, I didn’t time to read every Mommy Blog there is!” Harry spat. Of course Malfoy was going to be like this. He was such a control freak! He couldn’t let Harry just parent his way, now could he?  
“I haven’t slept in two days, Potter! I’ve read four parenting guides so far!” Draco hissed. It was true. While Astoria had been getting their apartment all set and the engagement finalized, Draco had spent every waking hour studying how he should raise this child. Potter could be a better auror than him. He could be more popular, and nicer, and have a better butt, but he would not out-parent Draco Malfoy! “So what do you want to do? I could do brunch on Sunday if you’re free. Maybe we could go to the movies. Astoria’s got a house warming party Saturday night that I’d love to get out of, but it might be too late-”  
Harry huffed again. “What are you talking about, Malfoy? Are you asking me on a date?”  
Draco was actually quite offended by this remark. “Of course not, Potter, don’t flatter yourself! Remember what Gillings said about us having to do things together as a family?”  
“Potter! Malfoy! That Cupperton case isn’t going to solve itself!” Glacia shouted.  
Both men sighed and fell into chairs. “We’ll discuss it over lunch then,” Draco announced. “Now, we should look over the sightings on more time before we go out searching, I should believe.”  
\--  
Harry was incredibly relieved when the clock struck 5:30 and he was permitted to go home. Today had not been nearly as bad, they had gotten much more done, but Harry thought if he saw Malfoy’s stupid face one more time, he was going to actually explode. Luckily, he wouldn’t have to see him again until Sunday, when they would be taking Teddy to the local zoo.  
“Welcome home, love!” Ginny cried as soon as he stepped in through the door. The apartment, from what Harry could see, was a disaster zone. Toys littered every surface- and was that marker on the wall? “We’ve been playing all day, haven’t we, Teddy?” Ginny asked with a hint of exhaustion in her voice.  
“All day!” Teddy declared.  
Harry laughed and picked him up. “Really?”  
Ginny smiled softly. “Oh, yes. We played all morning. Then, after lunch, we had a nap. And after that, Fleur brought Victoire over and we played with her! Now, we’re making crafts. Teddy drew a picture of his family- look!” She said, holding up a piece of paper.  
The paper was pink and featured three scribbles; a red one, a green one, and a blue one. There was also a yellow scribble in the corner, which Harry assumed to be the sun. “This Uncle Harry,” Teddy said, pointing to the blue one. “This Auntie Ginny,” the green one. “And this Teddy!” He announced, pointing to the last scribble.  
“Wow, Teddy bear! This is a work of art!” Harry said enthusiastically. “Is this the sun right here in the corner?” He asked.  
“That Uncle Draco!” Teddy shrieked.  
“Oh- that’s lovely, Teddy!” Harry said wearily. “I’ll hang this up on the fridge- right here!”  
Ginny laughed. “Well, we’d better get ready! Mrs. Nora from upstairs is going to come over in a couple minutes so we can got have a play date with Hermione and Ron!” She said.  
They got ready as best they could while trying to keep Teddy occupied and seated in his ‘highchair’, which was several large books stacked on top of a chair, secured with one of Harry’s belts. That was on the list of things to do this weekend. Mrs. Nora came right on time. Harry gave her strict instructions on when to put Teddy to bed, and they left.  
“Okay, mate. Just explain to me one more time how you managed to get yourself stuck in this one?” Harry’s best friend Ron asked, chewing on a wing. They had decided to meet at a bar very close to the apartment, so Harry and Ginny could run back if they needed to.  
“Goodness, Ron, you’re being so rude!” Harry’s other best friend, Hermione, said, pulling her boyfriend back. He had accidentally stuck his elbow in the salad the four of them were supposed to share.  
“Blimey- sorry,” Ron muttered, rubbing his elbow with a napkin.  
Harry wasn’t sure how they had lasted that long. They loved each other a lot, as far as Harry knew, but they were constantly bickering. They were happy that way, Harry assumed. They had bickered with one another ever since they had met in first year, and eventually all of that bickering lead them to be together. But they were also the happiest couple Harry knew, so he decided not to judge.  
“You heard the story!” Ginny snarled at her brother. “Merlin’s beard, you have the brain of a fly!”  
“I’m just confused!” Ron said. “Why would Tonks’ mum leave Teddy to Draco?”  
“That’s what I said!” Harry agreed.  
Hermione rolled her eyes. “Clearly, she wanted to keep him in the bloodline. Draco was the last member of her family who hadn’t been sent to Azkaban or died. She obviously trusted him because he had watched Teddy before when she was sick. Face it, Harry, you can be a little unreliable.”  
“Me? Unreliable? I have no idea what you’re saying!” Harry shouted. He took another big sip of his beer. He made a face. He wished it was firewhiskey, but this was a muggle bar and they didn’t exactly serve it.  
She huffed. “I’m just saying! You weren’t there when she was sick and needed help. You said you were too busy with work. Malfoy had no money, no friends, and was in the middle of auror training- some of the hardest training in the world- and still managed to watch him. Doesn’t that make your excuse seem kind of pathetic? Oh, don’t give me that look, Ron!”  
Harry hated when Hermione was right. “Stupid Malfoy,” he grumbled. “You know what he said to me at work today? He accused me of being a bad parent because I hadn’t gotten Teddy a highchair or read any parenting guides. He said he’s read four! Four, Hermione! It’s been two days!” Harry shouted.  
“Asshole,” Ron grumbled, helping himself to another wing.  
“You’ve got to give it to him, Harry. He’s determined,” Hermione said, taking the wing out of her boyfriend’s hand and taking a bite.  
“It’s not determination, it’s evil,” Ron argued.  
“In two days Malfoy has managed to get himself engaged without even having a girlfriend, get himself an apartment, and read four parenting books! And now I’ve got to work with him on this stupid case for work! He works so bloody slowly, I swear to Merlin! He reads everything eighteen hundred times, writes it down, and then reads what he’s written! At this pace, we’re never going to get it done! And then he gets mad at me! He yelled at me for touching my hair today! I’m just so glad I don’t have to see him until Sunday. The bloody child services lady said Teddy wont have a proper family unless we make an effort to spend time together at least once a week. We’re taking him to the zoo.”  
“Oi. Good luck,” Ron grumbled.  
Hermione shrugged. “It’s interesting to hear this about Malfoy. He was never this focused in school, was he?”  
Ron scoffed. “No, because his Daddy was on the school board. He got whatever he wanted, didn’t he! Now that he doesn’t have that to fall back on, he’s got to start pulling his own weight.”  
“Yeah, well, he’s focused now,” Harry grumbled.  
“I, for one, am not looking forward to you working on this case with him,” Ginny said. “I hear about him enough! ‘Malfoy frowned at me in the corridor today’, ‘Malfoy pushed me out of the lift today’. Now you’ve got to spend your entire day with him!” She said.  
“Yes, well, Harry’s always been a little obsessed with Malfoy,” Hermione commented.  
Harry was suddenly very eager to change the subject. “So, Ron, how’s working with George going?” He asked.


	5. Chapter Five: Part of the Family

Draco had a rather slow weekend.  On Friday night, he had dinner with Astoria’s family. All of them were quite pleasant people, though they were a bit worried that he and Astoria were ‘rushing into their marriage’. Astoria convinced them all otherwise, saying they were sweethearts from school and she hadn’t known Draco had loved her as much as she had loved him until the night they were reunited. Draco had to give it to here, she  _ was  _ a good actress. 

Her family was very large, as Astoria was the second eldest of four children. The sister closest to her age had gone to Hogwarts the same year as Draco, Daphne. The other two were much younger and didn’t enter until Draco and Astoria had left. They all were identical; three girls and one boy, all stick-thin with wavy brown hair and menacing brown eyes. 

The other topic of conversation that night was Teddy. 

“You’re so young!” Astoria’s mother commented, delicately slicing into her steak. “Don’t you think handling a child is a lot of responsibility?” She asked. 

Astoria giggled and rubbed the side of Draco’s arm. “We can handle it, mother! I’m sure Theodore will be a bundle of joy!” She punctuated her sentence with a giggle. “And Draco is  _ very  _ responsible. Besides, we only get him every other week. His godfather takes care of him the rest of the time. I think we should get on quite nicely!” 

“Is that so?” Astoria’s father asked. “Who is the godfather? Do we know him?” He asked. He was the odd one out of the family. While his wife and children were all slim and very bland looking, Mr. Greengrass was a bit more disturbing. His hair was almost completely gray and was beginning to wither away, leaving patches of bald purple skin scattered through his scalp. His eyes were less of a delicate brown, but more cloudy and shrouded. Like the rest of his family, he was remarkably thin, which couldn’t be healthy for a man his age. His nose protruded out from his face, Draco guessed it had to be at least seven inches long, but the very tip of it curved down slightly. This was not passed down to Astoria, who had a very small, thin nose. 

Astoria chewed for a moment before answering. “The godfather is Harry Potter, father,” she said. 

“Harry Potter, eh?” Mr. Greengrass asked, suddenly turning very lively. “You know ‘im then?” He asked Draco. 

Draco nodded. “Yes, sir. He’s my partner at work as well. Very… pleasant… man,” he spat through gritted teeth. He wouldn’t allow his father-in-law-to-be to think that Draco was raising a child with the bane of his existence. 

“Is he really?” Mr. Greengrass chuckled into his napkin. “Tell me, what’s he like? When will we get to meet him?” 

“Meet him?” Draco asked. 

“Oh, yes, of course! He’s raising our first grandchild after all- he’s part of the family!” 

Astoria laughed nervously. “Part of the family- Father that’s a bit extravagant, isn’t it?” She asked. “It’s not a big deal, really. Really! Tell them, Draco. Raising Teddy with Mr. Potter isn’t really a- a- well, it doesn’t matter! We will be Teddy’s real parents, honest. Potter only gets him every other week for legal reasons!” 

Draco nodded. “Yes, that’s quite right. Legal reasons,” he said confidently. 

“Legal reasons or not, Astoria, he’s part of our family now,” Mr. Greengrass snarled. “I expect him to be at your housewarming party tomorrow night, so I might meet him.” 

“I hate to let you down, sir, but I’m afraid that won’t be possible,” Draco said firmly. “Mr. Potter’s a very busy man. If I remember correctly, he will be spending the evening with his fiance’s family. I’m afraid you’ll simply have to meet him on another occasion.” 

“The wedding, perhaps?” Astoria offered. 

Mr. Greengrass did not seem at all pleased with this answer. “The wedding it is. I’m sure Mr. Potter would never miss your wedding, Draco. You  _ are  _ his partner and co-guardian,” he said pointedly. 

Draco smiled and nodded his head. “I can assure you, Mr. Potter will be there.”  _ Unless he schedules his own bloody wedding on the same date, I’ll make sure he attends.  _ He thought bitterly. 

Astoria sighed dreamily and put down her utensils. “Now mother, father, thank you so much for having Draco and I over for dinner, but I’m afraid it’s time for us to go. We’ve got a lot to do back at the apartment! And we’ve got to apparate- we’ve yet to set it up to the floo network. Draco mentioned wanting to get some work done as well,” she said to her parents. She stood from her seat, kissed both her parents on the cheek, and apperated away before another word could be said. 

“Thank you very much, it’s been absolutely lovely,” Draco said, kissing Mrs. Greengrass and shaking Mr. Greengrass’s hand. He apperated back to the apartment to see Astoria collapsed on the couch. 

“Ugh, I can’t stand them!” She shouted. “Everytime I look at them, all I can see is my betrayal! Listen to me! Listen to the way I talk when I’m around them! They conditioned me to be a perfect pureblood princess with proper manners or whatever and I go and fall in love with a muggle woman!” She wailed. “Merlin- I’m sorry Draco. I’m sorry I pulled you into all of this. If they ever find out, you can say you never had a clue.”

Draco wasn’t exactly sure what to say, so he began to pour her a glass of wine. “It’s alright, Astoria, really,” he said quietly. “They’ll never know.” 

Astoria groaned and took the glass out of his hand before he had even finished pouring. “Did you see the way Daphne was watching me?” She asked. Admittedly, Draco hadn’t even noticed Daphne sitting with them at the table. He was took focused on their parents. “She already hates me for marrying you- she had a bit of a crush on you at school. And now-  _ now _ \- I’m stealing everything away from her! I get the husband she wants that I don’t even want- no offense, Draco-, I get a posh apartment in London, I get a  _ child _ ! Draco, do you know how old I am?” She asked. 

He paused for a moment. “Bloody hell,” he finally answered. “Nineteen.”

“Nineteen!” Astoria cried. “I’m not even in my twenties yet! Daphne’s your age and she still lives with my parents! All I wanted was to be happy with the girl I love, but I’ve just made myself miserable!”

“It’s going to be alright,” Draco said, sitting down on the couch beside her. He wasn’t really sure what to do. If he had actually loved her, he might touch her arm or hug her. Did she consider him a friend? What would a friend do at a time like this? Or were they strictly business partners? He awkwardly reached out and took her hand, the same way she did to him they night they got engaged. “Look around us. You and your acting skills managed to get us a two-story loft in London! And a ravishingly gorgeous fiance. And a kid, who is pretty adorable. It’s going to be okay. If you feel sad… just… pretend you’re acting. Act like you’re happy. Keep telling yourself that this is what you want and that you are happy and you’ll become happy.” 

“Draco, that sounds exactly like what you’re not supposed to do.” 

He shrugged. “Worked for me,” he mumbled. “When’s the next time you get to see your girlfriend?” He asked.

“Tomorrow. She’s coming to the housewarming party.” 

“Excellent. Will you introduce me to her?” He asked. Astoria nodded. “Wonderful. What’s she like, if you don’t mind me asking?” 

Astoria took a deep breath a smiled. “She’s absolutely perfect, Draco. She’s got this short black hair and golden eyes. She’s incredibly tall, it’s a little crazy. On our second date, it was at this pub, and she wanted to go for a walk in the park. So we were leaving the pub and she- she-” Astoria started to laugh. “She hit her head on the doorframe! Oh, Draco, we laughed for hours!” 

“She sounds like a real ladykiller,” Draco said, smirking. 

Astoria grinned. “Thanks for cheering me up, Draco. You’re right. If I’m doing all of this for her, it’ll be worth it,” she said. She dropped Draco’s hand and pulled him into a hug. “I just want you to know that I’m so lucky to have you. It’s only been a few days, but you’re the closest friend I’ve ever had,” she announced. Draco laughed. “I’m glad that out of all the pureblood assholes in the world, I’ve got to marry you.” 

“The same to you,” Draco said. “Now if you’ll excuse me, I’ve got to go study so I can be a better father than Potter.” 

Astoria sighed. “I’ve got to go vomit. Mum’s cooking doesn’t sit in my stomach quite right. She’s got house elves, but for whatever reason, she’s been refusing to let them do anything lately. She’s set them free- gave them clothes and everything- but they refuse to leave. She’s an elves’ rights advocate now, I suppose. She said something about that Hermione Granger…” 

\--

Saturday morning, Harry and Ginny were woken promptly at 7 AM (“Gee, can’t the kid take the weekend off?” Ginny grumbled.) by not crying, but singing. Teddy had taken his side of the baby monitor and decided to use it as a microphone for that morning’s wake up performance. Harry had to admit, it wasn’t a bad cover of the ever so popular song ‘Teddy Is Awake Now’. 

“Here’s the game plan!” Ginny announced, slapping a color-coordinated planner that may or may not have been an old Quidditch playbook on the counter. “We’ve got to meet with the daycare lady at noon, which means we can get a quick lunch before because T is going to be hungry,” Ginny announced. “Unless you feel like having a huge breakfast now, which I do not. Mum wants us at the Burrow by two, which is clearly not going to happen.” 

“We’re on a strict nap time schedule here. If we ruin it, Malfoy will end me,” Harry said. Draco had sent him a long detailed pamphlet on what was best for Teddy, that Harry had opted out of reading apart from the parts Draco had so kindly highlighted. 

Ginny nodded. “Right, so we’ll take a nap at two and we’ll be at the Burrow by four. We’re staying for dinner, but we shouldn’t stay too long afterward because we have to get Teddy to bed. You guys are going to bed early because you’ve got a big day tomorrow! You get up whenever Teddy wants to get up. Then, the three of us will go out to breakfast. I’ll go home and go grocery shopping and try to figure out how to turn that crib into a toddler bed. You and Teddy will proceed to the zoo, where you will meet Malfoy. At the zoo, you are responsible over Teddy, which means you have to feed him lunch and you can’t get into any fights with Malfoy.” 

“Teddy goes zoom zoom,” Teddy said, racing his car on the counter. 

Ginny nodded. “That’s right. Teddy will go zoom zoom. No cars on the countertop, though, these are granite,” she said, moving him to the floor. “Sound good?” She asked Harry. 

“Sounds good,” Harry agreed. 

“Let’s move out!” Ginny shouted, marching out the door. 

“Move out!” Teddy yelled, toddling at her heals. 

\--

They arrived at the Burrow at three thirty, for Teddy’s nap had been disappointingly short. Traveling with Teddy had proven to be quite difficult. They didn’t trust using floo powder, so Harry had to take him with side-along apperation. Teddy hated this so much that he cried for about an hour afterwards. 

“How long have you got this little bugger?” George asked, examining the wailing child as if he were a piece of equipment. 

“Every other week until he gets his own place,” Harry sighed, rubbing his eyes. 

“Mhm. Ron and I have been working on developing a series of new products we think Teddy could help us with,” George explained. “You know, the basics. Turn your enemies into babies for several minutes, that sort of stuff.” 

“Have you make anything to make him stop crying?” Harry asked. 

George bit his lip. “Not exactly, but I’ll see what we’ve got,” he said, handing the baby to an unsuspecting Ron, who happened to be passing by. “What do you think we should do to clog this kid up, little brother?” George asked. 

Ron shrugged. “I reckon a giggle taffy might do you well, but only for a couple minutes. Then he might cry even more from laughing so hard. You know, we’re working on developing a child-based line of goodies,” Ron said. He was like a walking George, only taller. He bounced Teddy on his hip while George rummaged through his briefcase. “I was thinking of something you could use to stop the crying. Do you mind if we bottle his tears?” 

Harry shrugged. “Go for it. Just don’t test anything on him. Malfoy would actually kill me. Did I show you the childcare pamphlet he sent me?” He asked. 

“No,” Ron said, taking a small glass bottle out of George’s briefcase with his free hand. 

“Aha! This should do the trick!” George announced, holding up a can. 

“A can of nuts? What’s that supposed to do?” Harry asked, folding his arms.  “If you hurt my kid, we’re all dead. Just so we’re clear.” 

Ron chuckled. “Yes, Harry, we know Malfoy will end us. This one’s a good one- promise.” 

“It’s not entirely original, but it will work,” George said. “Okay,  Teddy! Look at this can of peanuts! Would you like a peanut?” He asked. Teddy cried even louder. “Okay, okay! Look! Uncle Georgie is going to get you some peanuts, okay?” He opened the can and two doves, a bouquet of flowers, and three fake snakes popped out. 

This seemed to do the trick. Teddy’s hair turned bright red to match the Weasleys’ and he roared with laughter. “Snake!” He giggled, picking up one of the toy snakes. 

“You can keep that,” Ron told Teddy. “Trust me, it will keep him entertained for ages,” he said to Harry. He scooped up the bouquet of flowers that was still in the can and handed them to Harry. “And look, a little something for the wife, too.” 

Harry sighed. “Ron, Ginny and I aren’t married yet,” he said. 

Ron winked. “Read the tag.” 

Harry took the flowers out of his hand and read the tag. It said  _ To: Draco, From: Your baby daddy _ in smooth font. “Oh, nice. Really classy, Ron!” Harry laughed, hitting his friend upside the head with the flowers. “You get a real kick out of this one, don’t you?” 

“Oi! Watch the hair! We’ve got a photoshoot tomorrow!” Ron shouted, ducking out of the way.

“Oh, hello, Teddy!” Hermione cooed, quickly zeroing in on the toddler. She took him away from Ron and began to bounce him around. “Have you got a snake toy? Now, where is that from? Is it from Uncle Georgie?” 

“Snake!” Teddy shrieked, sticking it in her face. 

“I certainly see it!” She said. “Now, Harry, when is he going into school? Does he know his letters and numbers yet? It’s never too early to start, you know.” 

Harry sighed. “Honestly, Hermione, you’re worse than Malfoy! He’s going to daycare starting on Monday. The lady who owns it, her sister is a witch, so she’s well prepared for whatever Teddy can throw at her. She said a few of the other people who work there used to be teachers, so I assume they’ll help him along.” 

“Dinner!” Mrs. Weasley called. 

All of the Weasley children along with their spouses and the two grandchildren began to file into the kitchen. It was much too small for this amount of people, but that never stopped Molly Weasley before. Harry and Ginny sat towards the end where they had a real highchair for Teddy. Harry suspected it was over 30 years old and had been used for Bill when he was a baby, but it was better that Teddy’s highchair at home. 

“So, Harry, why isn’t Draco here dining with us?” Mrs. Weasley asked. 

Harry shook his head. “It’s not really like that, Mrs. Weasley,” he explained. “We’re not really family- just work partners who share a kid,” he tried to explain.

“Oh, that’s nonsense, Harry, dear!” Mrs. Weasley cooed. 

“Malfoys an asshole, honest, Mum!” Ron said. 

“Language!” Bill and Harry shouted at the same time. Their children couldn’t have been less interested in what Ron had said. Victoire was busy dissecting a carrot with a spoon and Teddy was quickly approaching second base with his toy snake. 

“Now, Ron! Don’t be saying that! Any family of Teddy’s is a family of ours now. Draco included,” Mrs. Weasley said sternly. “Will I see him at the wedding at least?” 

“Bloody hell, Mum, stop asking about the wedding!” Ginny said. Harry elbowed her sharply, but she kept going. “It’s months away, maybe even years! We haven’t started planning anything! Now that we’ve got Teddy, we haven’t got any time! So give it a rest, won’t you? Ask Ron and Hermione about their wedding.” 

Ron’s ears turned bright purple and Hermione suddenly became very interested in her fork. 

“Snaaaaake!” Teddy yelled, displaying the toy snake to the table. 

“To Teddy’s snake,” Mr. Weasley said, raising his glass. 

“To Teddy’s snake,” the rest of the family chorused. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I want you all to know that it's New Years Eve and I'm sitting alone in my room writing gay Drarry fanfic. And I wouldn't want to be doing anything else!  
> A few things:   
> 1) I didn't proofread this because I was too lazy. I apologize if your eyeballs fall out of your heads from my blasphemous spelling.   
> 2) Starting Tuesday (1/3/17) I'll be back in school, so I wont be posting as much. I'm not sure what my schedule will be like. I could post every other day, or I could post once a week. I'm going to write as much as I can in the meantime so I wont have to keep you guys waiting. 
> 
> Thanks for reading!  
> Lily


	6. Chapter Six: Not A Date

“Ginny… how are we going to get to the zoo?” Harry asked Sunday morning when he and Teddy were about to depart. “Side-along apperation clearly isn’t an option.” 

“Sure it is,” Ginny said. “Has he got his snake?” 

“Yes, but I doubt it will help,” he said. He anxiously rolled Teddy’s stroller back and forth, hoping that making it would prepare him for apperation. They were skipping naptime today, and Harry was worried he wouldn’t hold up for very long. 

Ginny shrugged. “It’s worth a try. He might be better at it this time. Good luck,” she said, kissing Harry’s cheek. “Have fun without me!” She said, crouching in front of Teddy’s stroller. “Tell the lions I say ‘hi’!” 

“Hi lions, hi!” Teddy giggled. 

Harry sighed. “See you,” he told Ginny. He took a deep  breath and apperated to the Zoo. He made sure to go to the location where Malfoy had told them, so no one would see him appear out of thin air. Malfoy hadn’t arrived yet, they were a bit early, so Harry crouched in front of the stroller to make sure Teddy was okay. Sure enough, he sat in the stroller with the snake in his arms, as happy as could be. 

“Potter,” came a sneering voice. Harry stood up to see Malfoy standing behind the stroller. It was odd seeing him in normal muggle clothes. Every time Harry had seen him, he was in either school robes or his auror robes. Now, he was wearing a casual t-shirt with dark, somewhat tight jeans. It wasn’t too cold, so he had a hoodie over his t-shirt. “Are you going to just stand there and stare at me or are you going to let me see my child?” Malfoy grumbled. 

Harry sighed and shook his head before turning back to Teddy. “You want to say ‘hi’ to Uncle Malfoy? Show him your snake!” He said, taking him out of his stroller and placing him on the ground. 

“This is Teddy’s snake!” Teddy announced, marching towards Draco. 

“Wow! That’s a scary snake!” Malfoy said, scooping the child up. “Where’d you get it?” 

“Uncle Georgie get Teddy snake,” Teddy said. “Teddy took Uncle Georgie’s hair!” He giggled to himself, putting the snake on his head. 

Malfoy nodded. “I see that!” He turned to Harry. “So you took him to the Weasley household, I trust? Have you got his diaper bag and everything? What’s your plan for lunch? Speaking of diaper bags, when do you think we should potty train him? One website said between eighteen months and three years, so I think we should really start now.” 

Harry sighed and began to walk toward the entrance to the zoo. “Malfoy, if this is what our entire day is going to be like, it’s not going to be a very fun day for any of us. One question at a time.” 

“Do… you… think… we… should… start… potty… training?” Draco asked, articulating each word spectacularly so that it would certainly get through Potter’s thick skull. 

“Yes. I think we should. Ginny’s setting up his toddler bed right now, so do you think it would be too much to introduce potty training and a big-boy bed at the same time?” Harry asked, suddenly filled with concern. If there was one this he didn’t want to do, it was to mess up this child. 

Draco shrugged. “I don’t think so,” he said. “Hello. Two adults and one toddler,” he said to the woman in the ticket booth. 

“I can pay for my own ticket, Malfoy,” Harry grumbled. He wasn’t sure if Malfoy had ignored him or simply hadn’t hear him, but he didn’t question it. 

“Here you are,” the woman said. “Your son is too cute! Here’s a sticker from the zoo! Do you want a lion, a snake, or a money?” She asked, holding up the sheet of stickers. 

“Snake!” Teddy shrieked. 

“Oh, he takes after me!” Draco laughed. “Thank you so much.” 

The woman laughed and handed Teddy the sticker, who promptly put it on Draco’s forehead. “No, thank you. What an adorable family. Enjoy the zoo and have a nice day!” She called as they walked away. 

“Well, she was pleasant,” Draco said. He removed the snake sticker from his forehead and put it on Teddy’s shirt. “Did you pack him a coat? I’m afraid he’s going to get chilly.” 

Harry sighed, “Malfoy, it’s nearly July!” He said. “But yes, of course I packed him a coat.” 

“Good. So about the potty training. Do you think we should bribe him with toys or something or just let it happen naturally? Because I’ve heard mixed reviews and-” 

“TURD!” Teddy screamed. 

It took Harry and Draco both several seconds to realize he was pointing at a giant tortoise and was not, in fact, yelling about poop. Though he may have been because the tortoise cage was littered with it. 

“Careful now, dear, don’t drop your snake in the exhibit,” Draco said as they walked over. “I’m going to put you down now, okay?” He placed Teddy on the ground and he immediately took off like a top,  sprinting all over the place. 

“What have you done?” Harry asked, panting as he tugged the stroller and the diaper bag after the sprinting toddler. 

“The zoo is an emotional experience for Teddy,” Draco explained. “I used to take him before nap time because it tires him out so much. His favorites used to be the bears, because he’s a Teddy bear, but now, I suspect he’ll enjoy the snakes. Thanks to that toy your Weasley friend gave to him.” They were allowed a short break while Teddy gaped at giraffes. 

“I think that’s enough running around for you,” Harry muttered, shoving him back in the stroller. 

“Giraffe!” Teddy cried, pointing to the tall animals. 

“That’s right,” Draco said. “What color is a giraffe?” He asked. 

“Brown and yellow!” The toddler giggled. “Giraffes are big!” 

They proceeded through the rest of the park like this. They would see an animal, and Harry or Draco would ask Teddy to describe it. It quickly became a competition. If Harry asked the question and Teddy described it correctly, Harry would get a point. If Teddy didn’t pay attention or described it wrong, he lost a point. 

“Shall we stop for lunch?” Draco asked as they approached the picnic benches. 

“Hungry!” Teddy cried. 

“Alright, alright,” Harry said. They found a remotely clear bench and pulled Teddy out of the stroller. He instantly began to run around again. “You chase Teddy bear, I’ll get us something to eat,” Harry said, pointing to the cafeteria. Draco was already chasing Teddy and didn’t have time to answer, but Harry assumed it would be alright. He wandered over to the cafeteria and realized he had no clue what Draco would eat. All that time in the Great Hall and Harry never exactly made note of his favorite foods. He finally settled on pizza that didn’t look poisonous for them and chicken nuggets for Teddy. 

“Who’s ready for lunch?” He asked, setting the tray on the table and scooping up a running Teddy. “I got you nuggets!” 

“Can snake have nuggets?” Teddy asked.  

“I suppose,” Harry sighed. “I didn’t know what to get you, so I got whatever looked the least likely to kill us,” he said as Draco sat down. 

Draco chuckled. “I think that’s the kindest thing you’ve ever said to me, Potter.” 

Harry shrugged. “Well, can’t exactly have my partner in crime dying of lousy zoo food,” he said. “Here comes the choo-choo train! Next stop- Teddy’s tummy!” He sang, picking up a chicken nugget. “Chugga chugga chugga chugga choo choo!” Teddy opened his mouth and chomped down right on Harry’s finger.

“Snake’s turn!” Teddy demanded, holding up the toy. 

“Oh, no, Teddy bear. Snakes don’t eat people food,” Draco said. “Snakes eat snake food. You have to eat all of your chicken nuggets, dear. Snake can have some snake food when he gets home.” 

“Hello, I hate to interrupt you,” a woman said, approaching them. “I just wanted to tell you that you are the cutest couple!”  

“Oh, no, we’re not-” Harry began. 

“Thank you!” Draco said, cutting him off. 

She nodded. “You’re welcome. It’s just that you don’t see many of your kind around here. It’s so nice. Times are changing, you know?” She said. Harry assumed she thought she was being kind, but he and Draco were  _ not  _ a couple. And even if they had been, Harry didn’t think he’d quite appreciate her commenting on their personal life.

“Thank you! We’re so flattered,” Draco said, putting on a fake smile. Harry wondered why he was doing this.  They weren’t a couple! “Have a nice evening.” 

“You too, darling, you too,” the woman said, finally leaving them alone. 

“What was that about?” Harry snarled as soon as she was out of earshot. “We’re not a couple, we’re just two guys who happen to be fathering the same kid!” 

Draco gave him an annoyed glare. “I know that. But do you think these muggles do? It’s kind of an odd situation, isn’t it. Do it for Teddy. They’re less likely to think we’re kidnapping him if we just go along and say we’re gay.” 

“But we’re not,” Harry said, force-feeding Teddy another chicken nugget. 

Draco sighed. “Whatever. You just let me do the talking and we’ll be fine. What do you want to see next? I think we should go to the reptile house so Teddy can see the snakes and then we can catch the lions on our way out. Have you got anywhere to be?” 

Harry shook his head. “We missed naptime, so I’d like to try and get that in but I’m afraid that if I do, he’ll never sleep. But this was our only plan today.” 

“Oh, how is the sleeping going? I’ve been meaning to ask. I got one of those baby monitors with the cameras. Astoria thinks it’s too much, but I just don’t think you can be too careful, you know?” 

\--

They concluded their day by leaving the zoo and getting ice cream. There, three more people found it in their hearts to tell Harry and Draco that they were ‘an adorable couple’ and that they ‘support them’. Harry was a bit frustrated with it until Teddy decided he didn’t like ice cream and he had bigger problems. 

“Merlin’s beard, Potter! Of all the flavors, you had to let him have chocolate!” Draco whined, trying to get a sizable brown stain out of his t-shirt. 

“My bad,” Harry muttered, but he was slightly enjoying watching Malfoy struggle. “You should probably go home and wash that.” Harry knew it would take a simple spell to clean it up, but this place was crawling with muggles and it wasn’t worth the risk. 

Draco sighed. “Guess so. Goodbye, Teddy bear! I’ll see you on Thursday, alright?” Teddy cooed and grabbed onto Draco’s nose. “See you tomorrow, Potter. Remember, meet me at Hogsmeade at eight and we’ll check the hills.” 

“Got it,” Harry said. 

Draco wandered to the back of the building and with a pop, he was gone. 

Harry decided it was best not to tell him that Teddy spent the next several hours with half of his hair light and blonde, and the other half black and curly. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If anyone was to look at my search history, they'd think I'm pregnant. Teddy is really making me do my research!!   
> Thanks!  
> Lily


	7. Chapter Seven: The Cupperton Case

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Harry and Draco interview the townspeople of Hogsmeade. They discover that Delano Cupperton created a new type of Dark Mark.

Monday morning Harry set out to meet Draco in Hogsmeade, the last place Cupperton had been seen. It was a bit warm, so Harry wore a t-shirt and jeans, like he had the previous day. Since they were doing field work and would not be required to stop by in the Ministry office, they could wear whatever they thought best suited their work. They had decided to wear muggle clothes, in case the evidence lead them to a nearby muggle village. 

Harry decided to leave an hour early to he could hang out with Ron in his and George’s new location in Hogsmeade. Ron said it was a bit slow most days, but they made tremendous amounts of money when the Hogwarts kids came, and Neville tended to stop by for lunch. 

“Hey, Harry!” Ron greeted him, opening the door to the shop for him. “We don’t open for another hour.” 

“S’alright. I’m meeting Malfoy down the street in an hour. We’re working on this case about a guy named Delano Cupperton, have you heard of him? He was last seen drinking mead at the Three Broomsticks. Have you seen him?” Harry asked, pulling a folded up picture out of his pockets. Mr. Cupperton was not a very attractive man. He had very large cheeks that reminded Harry of Uncle Dursley. In the picture, he was flashing a smile of rotten yellow teeth. His eyes were much too small for the rest of his face, as was his nose. He seemed to be pretending to have hair, but wasn’t fooling anyone. 

Ron nodded. “Oh, right! He was the chap who scared Madame Rosmerta half to death, wasn’t he? A bit of an odd ball. I heard through the grapevine that he showed her his dark mark and told her He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named would come back before scampering away. Guess he never came back, huh?”

Harry shook his head and put the picture back in his pocket. “Nope. Did you ever meet him?” 

“I saw him once or twice, he never had any business in a joke shop, I suppose,” Ron said. “Didn’t really think much of it. Around here, everybody knows everybody. Until the Hogwarts kids come down, of course. The only reason I paid any attention to him was because I didn’t recognize him.” Harry followed him as he ran around, replacing deplinished gags and stocking everything up. 

“Do you do all this by yourself?” Harry asked. 

Ron shook his head. “Normally, there’s not much to do. I’ve got a couple workers who will man the cash registers and make the products, but George is busy in our London location and not a lot of people stop by here.” 

“Do you like it?” Harry asked. 

“Yeah! I’ve got the best job in the world!” Ron grinned broadly. “I can’t wait until Teddy and Victoire get old enough. They can work here over the summer I suppose. They’re going to need to be potty trained first, though,” he said. 

Harry laughed. “I’m working on it! Teddy spent his first night in a big boy bed last night. Only came in to wake Ginny and I up four times. Well, he slept in our bed for most of the night. But I kept moving him back as soon as he fell asleep. It’s a work in progress.” 

Ron chuckled to himself. “I’m never having children,” he said. 

“Is that so?” Harry asked. “Does Hermione know?” 

“Are you kidding me? Hermione’s going to be Minister of Magic as soon as the current one lets his guard down for five minutes. She’s moving up the ranks so quickly, she hasn’t had one job for more than a week. She’s not going to have time for children!” Ron said. “She’s really modest about it, but I reckon she’s the hardest worker in the Ministry- no offence. That’s really why I haven’t proposed to her yet. I reckon she’ll say ‘Oh, Ron! I can’t take work off for a wedding!’” He said in a high pitched voice, batting his eyelashes. Harry roared with laughter. “I don’t mind, though. She’s happy, that’s what matters.” 

“Here, here,” Harry said, holding up a glass of some prank soda. Then, he realized it could be dangerous, so he put it down  again. 

Ron quickly forced boxes into Harry’s hands. “Might as well make yourself useful while you’re here. Stock up the education section, will you? We’ve got one week until the next Hogwarts trip, and I want to be ready this time.” The determination in his face was a bit frightening. 

\--

“There you are, Potter,” Malfoy grumbled as Harry approached. “You’re three minutes late!” He hissed, checking his watch. 

“Sorry, I was at Ron’s place,” Harry muttered. “He actually was able to tell me about this guy, Delano Cupperton.” He watched as Draco took a notebook and pen out of his bag. “He said he noticed him a few months ago because he wasn’t a regular. He didn’t go into Ron’s store, but he watched him walk by once or twice. He said he was always a little strange. He also said that there was this rumor the last time someone spotted Cupperton. Cupperton went into Three Broomsticks and ordered a drink. He showed Madame Rosmerta his dark mark and told her that Voldemort would return before he ran off.” 

Malfoy nodded. “So that gives us something,” he said. “Maybe we should ask the other shopkeepers around here and see what they’ve heard. This might be a multi-day case. I wonder why they waited so long to give it to us.” 

Harry shrugged. “Probably wanted the rumors to die down a bit. Let’s start asking around. Three Broomsticks doesn’t open for a bit, so we should ask Madame Rosmerta last. Shall we check the owlery? Nothing else opens for a few hours.”

The men began to walk down the road to the large white building. Harry wondered if it originally had been white, or if it was just from the thick layers of bird poop coating it. 

“How’s Teddy?” Malfoy asked softly. 

“Woke Ginny and I up four times last night. He’d lay in our bed for a bit and then I’d take him back into his bed as soon as he was asleep. We’re definitely not skipping naptime ever again. He starts daycare today. The woman who owns it’s sister is a witch, so she knows what to expect,” Harry said, casually. He stuck his hands in his pockets. 

“Will you stop kicking stones, Potter?” Malfoy muttered. Harry hadn’t even realized he’d started. “You’re dressed rather inappropriately for work, you know.” Perhaps he was right. Malfoy looked somewhat official with a button-down shirt and real pants with dress shoes. But it was too much work for Harry to get dressed on five hours of sleep. 

“Ladies first,” he said softly to himself, holding the door open for Malfoy. 

“Hello, how can I help you?” The store manager asked. Harry read from his nametag that he was called William Burren. He was alone in the owlery apart from hundreds of thousands of birds. 

Malfoy effortlessly pulled out his Ministry official badge. “Hello, Mr. Burren. My partner and I are aurors from the Ministry of Magic and we’ve come to ask you a few questions about a Delano Cupperton,” he said. He tried to lean on the front counter, but there was bird poop all over it. 

Harry took out the picture from his pocket. “This is what he looks like. He’s a suspected Death Eater and the last place we was seen was the Three Broomsticks a few months ago,” he said. “Do you have any information on the subject that you could use to help us?” 

Mr. Burren squinted at the picture for a moment and moved his glasses around. “Y-yes, I believe I do. But ex-excuse me, sirs, my memory isn’t what it used to me,” he muttered. 

“That’s alright, Mr. Burren. Just tell us what you can remember,” Draco said. 

“Well… it was a fine day in May, I believe, when he came into my shop. I’d seen him once or twice before. Now, I don’t usually remember faces very well, but I remember this one. It’s those little eyes he’s got. Around here, all of us shop owners know each other. And we know our customers. I had never seen this man before. Sometimes we get customers who come back for nostalgia’s sake, to remember the good old days when they came here as Hogwarts students. That’s what I figured it was. So he moseyed on into my shop and asked for four owls that could deliver a letter long distance as quickly as possible. He said price wasn’t a problem. So I gave him four of my finest owls. He tied a single piece of paper to each one’s leg- it looked like four of the same letter- and they were off. They all returned as fine as ever, not even a bit ruffled,” Mr. Burren told them. “After that day, I never saw that man ever again. Rosmerta told me about him, and I swear, I’d never had sold to him if I knew he was… one of those.” 

Harry noticed that Draco had grabbed his left arm and was touching it lightly, as if it hurt to apply too much pressure. 

“I wonder, do you remember anything of what he was wearing?” Harry asked after a silence had passed. 

“A raincoat, I believe, sir. It was raining out, as usual. I seem to remember him wearing a hat, as well. But I couldn’t tell you much else if my life depended on it, sir.” 

Harry turned to Draco. “Anything you’d like to ask?” Draco, who was still writing things down, shook his head. Harry turned back to the owlery manager. “Thank you, Mr. Burren. That will be all. Have a very pleasant day,” he said. 

“You too, sirs! I hope you catch him. Can’t stand the idea of those villains running around.” 

They checked several more shops, all with the same answer. They recognized the man because of his strange appearance and because they didn’t recognize him. Everyone described him as a short man in a long raincoat, perhaps with a hat. He seemed innocent as he passed their store windows, but a bit odd in the head, perhaps. They, too, had all heard the gossip of what had happened to Madame Rosmerta and had not seen the man since. At one, Harry and Draco decided it was about time for their lunch and that they would interrogate Madame Rosmerta afterward. 

Harry decided to spend his lunch break with Ron at his shop. 

“Hey, Harry!” Harry’s old friend, Neville Longbottom greeted him as he entered the shop. “It’s been way too long!” 

“It has, Neville!” Harry said with a grin. “Tell me, what’s it like being a Hogwarts professor? Are you enjoying it?” He asked, allowing himself to lean against one of Ron’s display tables. 

Neville nodded enthusiastically. “Oh, Harry, it’s great! You should see the place, they’ve completely redone it since the war. They’ve still got the whole creepy aesthetic going on, but all of the corridors have rearranged themselves. I get lost every day. Most of our professors are still there, though I’ve taken over for Herbology. I was talking to Minerva- I mean Headmistress McGonagall, to you- the other day, and we both think you should apply for the Defense Against the Dark Arts job.” 

Harry chuckled. “I’m an auror, I’m afraid. Is the job still cursed these days?” He asked. 

Neville shrugged. “I guess so. Still haven’t been able to hold a teacher. I reckon this one’s going to stay, though. Nice chap,” 

“Say, Neville, have you heard anything about this Cupperton guy?” Harry asked, pulling out the picture once more. “I’m here for the day interviewing people about him. He’s a supposed Death Eater who went missing a couple months ago. There are rumors that he told Madame Rosmerta that Voldemort would rise again.” 

“Oh, yeah! The students were talking about him for a solid week. Much longer than they hold another other gossip. I’m afraid nothing I’ve heard is true, though. There’s a rumor still going around that you have a dragon tattooed on your chest. Can’t really trust anything they say.”

“I’m back!” Ron announced, entering from a room in the back. “We had a bit of an issue with the Pigmy Puffs. They’ve started to rebel. Don’t want pre-teen girls as their owners anymore. Want a sandwich, Harry?” He asked, holding up a plastic bag. 

“I’m all set, you’ve got Pigmy Puff hands,” Harry muttered, making a face. 

“How’s the investigation going?” Ron asked, sliding onto the front counter. 

Harry shrugged. “About as well as an investigation with Malfoy can go. We’ve dug up a few more details, I suppose. We know the day before he disappeared, he sent out four of the same letter with long-distance owls. All of the owls came back unharmed, but we’re not really sure if that’s significant.” 

A bell rang as the door to the shop opened. “Potter!” Malfoy said, stepping in. “Recess is over. We’ve got to get back to work. I just saw Madame Rosmerta unlock the doors to Three Broomsticks.” 

Harry rolled his eyes at Neville and Ron and got up. “See you guys later. It was nice catching up with you, Neville!” He shouted as he left. 

“Longbottom works here now?” Malfoy sneered. 

“Yeah. He’s a professor at Hogwarts, actually,” Harry said. The disgusted look on Malfoy’s face filled him with joy. 

They knocked on the glass door to Three Broomsticks several times before they got an answer. 

“We don’t open until three!” Someone called. 

“We’re aurors from the Ministry! We have some questions to ask you!” Draco shouted. 

Madame Rosmerta hurried to the door and let them it. “Oh, so sorry, boys. I thought you were customers!” She said, using her wand to wash a glass. “Can I get you two anything?” She asked, inviting them to sit at the bar as she hurried around. She made eye contact with Draco and dropped it instantly. Guilt swelled up in his chest. He had placed her under the Imperial curse a year before the war. He never forgave himself. 

Draco shook his head. “That won't be necessary, ma’am,” he said. Harry was a bit disappointed, he’d been craving a butterbeer. “We’ve come to ask you a few questions about Mr. Delano Copperton. As I’m sure you know, he’s a suspected Death Eater and he’s now gone missing. We received some reports that he was last seen here, showing you his dark mark.”

“Oh, dear me, I thought that’s what you’d say,” Rosmerta muttered. She shook her head anxiously. “I remember that man quite clearly. He gave me just about the biggest fright of my life!” She said. Malfoy took out his notebook. “When he came in here, I knew he was a strange man. I didn’t really think about it. I get a lot of strange men comin’ in here, but usually they’re just drunk. This man was strange even before I got alcohol in ‘im. He came right in and sat ‘imself down at the bar. He was wearin’ a loooong raincoat. He kept steppin’ on the ends of it, he was a bit too short. He had to swing ‘is leg up real high in order to get ‘imself  up on my bar stool. He had this hat on and it was soakin’ wet from the rain and he put it right on my damn countertops!” She said. She ran a finger along the wood of the bar for effect. “I couldn’t complain, though, could I? He was a payin’ customer, an’ that’s what mattered. So I asked him for his order. He ordered two fire whiskeys, an’ I got ‘em for ‘im. He downed ‘em both in one sip. I didn’t think much of it. I asked ‘im if that’d be all an’ he said yes. I asked ‘im to pay up then, I couldn’t have him loiterin’ there all day!” She said. She slammed her cleaning rag down on the bar and shook her head. “That’s when he grabbed me by the arm. He rolled up his sleeve and it was one of those nasty dark marks-” 

“Could you describe it for me?” Draco interrupted. Harry wondered why she needed to describe it. He had one of his very own to look at. 

“It was a skull, ya see, with a snake comin’ out of it. And on the top, there was a bird perched on top,” Madame Rosmerta said. 

“A bird?” Draco asked. He looked at Harry. Both of them knew there was no bird on a typical dark mark. Just the skull and the snake. 

Rosmerta nodded. “Yes. I’m no bird expert or anythin’, but it looked a bit like a hawk to me. It was a big one. It’s claws went into the skull an’ caused crack marks n’ everythin’. It wasn’t a pretty sight, that’s for sure.” 

Draco scribbled this down furiously. “You’re sure?” He asked. He slowly rolled up his sleeve to reveal his own dark mark. It gave Harry the chills, seeing it for the first time since the war. It looked as if Draco had tried to scrape it off with his own hands. There were long red scars going through it. “Did it look like this?” 

Madame Rosmerta raised her eyebrows. “Yes, but I’m certain it had a bird on it. I’d seen a dark mark before, sir, an’ it didn’t look like the one Mr. Copperton had on ‘is arm.” 

“Okay,” Harry said as Draco put his arm away. “So what happened after he showed you the dark mark?” He asked. 

“He said to me, he pulled me real close and said ‘The dark lord will return’ real smooth and quiet like that. Then he shoved me away, grabbed ‘is hat an’ ran for it. Toward the hills over there. I called the Ministry right away, I did,” Rosmerta said. Her voice was shaking a little bit. The glass she had been trying to clean shattered. “Oh, excuse me! It just upsets me so much to think about,” she muttered. “ _ Reparo!  _ Tell me, Mr. Aurors, do you think what he said was true? Do you think he’s really comin’ back?” She asked in a whisper. 

Harry shook his head. “No. It’s impossible. I made sure of it,” he said. “Malfoy, do you have anymore questions?” 

Malfoy shook his head and stuffed his notebook back into his bag. “No. That will be all, Madame Rosmerta. Thank you very much for all of your help,” he said quietly. He and Harry quickly left the shop. 

“What are you thinking?” Harry asked. The street was empty, he doubted anyone could hear them. 

Draco sighed. “I think you’re right. I think Voldemort can’t come back. But that doesn’t mean Copperton’s not trying to stir up another rebellion. There’s still one more place I want to check before we quit.” 

“What’s that?” 

“The Shrieking Shack. It’s not likely, but I want to make sure Copperton isn't hiding in there. It was one of Voldemort’s last hiding places, so it’d be significant to him. He knows no one in the village would go near it.” 

“Ron would,” Harry said. “He knows it’s not haunted.” 

“Do you really think Weasley would fancy himself a walk through the shrieking shack during lunch hour?” Malfoy asked with a quickly glare. “I bet no one’s been in it since the war, which would be perfect for Copperton. He could also send his goons to get food and whatnot.” 

“But everyone said they’d know if there was a stranger walking around.” 

Malfoy sighed. “Has everything from the war slipped your mind?” He shouted. “You quite literally caught me using the imperius curse on Madame Rosmerta to try and kill Dumbledore! Copperton might be odd, but we don’t know enough to assume he’s not smart enough to imperialize someone.” 

Harry groaned. “I hope he isn’t, because I really hated checking to see if everyone I knew was imperialized.” 

Malfoy smirked. “That reminds me. Potter, what was the first thing I said to you when we met in first year?” 

Harry gasped. “You think  _ I’m  _ under the Imperius curse, Malfoy? I can resist it, remember?” He sighed when Malfoy wouldn’t budge. “You insulted Ron and then asked to be my friend,” he finally said. 

“I’m glad you remembered. What house do you think Teddy will be in?” Draco asked suddenly. 

“Does it matter?” Harry asked. “Whatever, we’re here. Let’s just look inside and get this over with. This place brings back too many bad memories,” he said with a shudder. 

“Fine. It will be quicker if we split up. Shout if you need backup,” Malfoy said, pushing the door open, 

“I won’t need backup,” Harry grumbled to himself. He stepped into the house, immediately inhaling too much dust. What little light shone through was what came through the boarded up windows. With every step, another board creaked. Harry couldn’t imagine Voldemort staying here after living somewhere as lavish as Malfoy Manor. “ _ Lumos _ ,” Harry whispered. A small blue light flickered at the tip of his wand. Malfoy did the same and began to move to the left. Harry decided it was his cue to move to the right. He searched his half of the down stairs with little to nothing. It hadn’t looked like it had been touched since the war. He slowly stepped up the stairs. There was one, long thin hallway. Harry couldn’t see to the end of it, but he heard footsteps and shuffling about in one of the rooms. 

He silently crept down the hallway to see what was going on. Light was peeking through the door, but it was closed. He nudged it open with his toe. 

A man screamed as Harry opened the door, causing Harry to scream as well and his heart raced. His eyes were still adjusting to the light and he couldn’t see anything as someone tripped and fell onto Harry, sending him tumbling to the ground. 

“Potter!” Draco sneered as they hit the hardwood floor. Luckily, he had Harry to cushion his fall. “Why’d you go sneaking up on me like that? I nearly had a heart attack!” He shouted. 

Harry groaned. “Get off me, Malfoy!” He shouted. 

Draco slid off and stood up before extending a hand to help Harry up. He didn’t take it. “Well, I don’t think he was in here. And if he was, he’s gone now,” Draco said. He was short of breath and feeling a bit dizzy. 

“I need to get out of this bloody house,” Harry grumbled. 

They exited the Shrieking Shack covered in dust. Draco’s heart was still beating furiously and Harry knew he was going to have a sizeable bruise on his back the next day. 

“For the record, that was a terrible idea,” Harry said. 

Draco shrugged. “We had to check it out. Meet me at the office tomorrow so we can review our information. We should start a search in the hills either tomorrow or Wednesday,” he said, still a bit short of breath. 

Harry nodded and disapperated before Malfoy could keep him a second longer. He’d had quite enough of that blonde fool for one day. 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> School starts tomorrow!! I'm working on chapter eight right now and I'm going to finish it tonight. Not sure when chapter nine will come out. It will be some point this week, I believe.   
> So I have some questions for you guys! PLEASE answer in the comments!   
> Did you like this chapter?   
> Would you like to see more about the Cupperton Case or more about Teddy?   
> Do you feel as though I'm portraying the characters well? Are they true to their canon personalities? 
> 
> Thank you so much for reading!!  
> Lily


	8. Chapter Eight: Hawk Owls

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Draco and Harry attempt to learn more about Delano Cupperton and his disappearance.

The next morning, Harry met Draco at the Ministry office, as usual. They sat down at Draco’s desk (Harry’s was much too unorganized for Draco’s taste) and looked over Draco’s notebook. 

“I hate to say it, Potter, but I think this is going to be a much bigger case than we thought it was. It’s not just a missing Death Eater anymore,” Draco huffed. His finger ran over the sketch of the new Dark Mark he had drawn. 

“Yeah. I reckon you’re right,” Harry said. “I hate this.” 

“Working with you isn’t a walk in the park, either,” Draco said, quizzically. 

Harry sighed. “Not working with you! The fact that Teddy’s two guardians are the leaders of an investigation that could lead to another war. I don’t want him to grow up in that world, Malfoy. Both of us were very involved in the war last time. And we were so young. I don’t want Teddy to go through that.”

Draco shook his head. “Me neither. But I don’t know we have a choice.” He rolled up his sleeve and looked at his Dark Mark. “I’ve got to get this covered up,” he muttered. 

“You mean with a tattoo?” Harry asked. “Why?” 

“Because if there  _ is  _ another war, I want people to know I’m on the right side this time,” Draco said. “And also for Teddy. It’s got a snake on it. He loves snakes, I can’t cover it up every time I’m around him. He’s going to ask about it someday and I want it to be clear that it was in the past.” 

Harry nodded. His hand flew up and he touched his scar. His battle wound showed that he was a hero. Draco’s showed that he had been a villain. It made Harry feel strangely anxious. He had never thought of it like that before. He was the hero and Draco was the villain. And yet, here they were. They were a team. They were going to solve the Copperton Case and they were going to raise a child, and they had no choice but to do it together. Good and evil. 

“We need to tell Glacia,” Draco said. “First thing’s first. Then, we should check the hills near Hogsmeade. Do you still have that bloody invisibility cloak?” He asked. 

“How’d you know about that?” Harry asked. 

Draco thought for a moment. “I stalked you a lot in school,” was what he managed to come up with. “Oh, don’t give me that look. You paced a hallway for hours trying to find me in sixth year! It wasn’t really a one-sided obsession!” He grumbled. “Have you got the cloak or not?” 

“Yes, I’ve got it. But it’s invisible… it might be hard to find,” Harry muttered. Where  _ had  _ he put that thing? It was in the apartment somewhere… 

“Got any news for me, ladies?” Glacia asked, approaching Draco’s cubicle. 

“Actually, we have,” Draco said, sliding his notebook toward the end of the desk so she could see his dark mark sketch. “We’ve received evidence that Cupperton was part of a new group of Death Eaters.” He held his arm out to the sketch for comparison. “He had a new dark mark, one with a bird perched on the skull. He revealed it to a shopkeeper while telling her the dark lord would be back. We also found out he went to the owlery before he went missing. He sent out for long-distance owls, each with the same letter,” Draco explain. 

Harry had never seemed Glacia look confused before. “Well… that  _ is  _ news…” she muttered, leaning over the notebook. “Have you discovered what any of this means yet? What’s your next step?” She asked. 

“We’re going to discuss the significance of the dark mark and the owls. We’ve both agreed that there’s no way for the dark lord to come back, but Copperton may be recruiting a group of ex- Death Eaters. We’re also going to check the hills by Hogsmeade to see if he’s hiding there,” Harry explained. 

“Looks like you two have your work cut out for you,” Glacia smiled. “Remember, we’ve got a meeting tomorrow at three. You two are briefing the office on your case. See you there,” she said. The men nodded. 

“So the hawk, what does that mean?” Harry asked, looking at the dark mark again. 

“I’m not sure, but I’ve been wondering if it’s connected to the owls he used. I’m no hawk expert, but I’m fairly sure they’re fast. And there’s a breed of owl called the Hawk Owl,” Draco said. 

Harry nodded. “I was wondering about that, too.” He reached over Draco to his computer. He typed in the name of the owl and pressed search. “‘ Northern Hawk Owl,’” he read. “They live in Canada. They don’t migrate… none of this really helps us.” 

“Look at the picture,” Draco said. He immediately began to scribble it down. “It looks a bit like a hawk, doesn’t it? We’re going to have to go back and ask Mr. Burren about the owls and Madame Rosmerta if this picture matches the dark mark.” 

Harry nodded. “Even if it does match up and he did use the hawk owls, what does that matter?” 

“He could be using a messaging system,” Draco said. “One thing is puzzling me, though. Why wouldn’t he just ask for hawk owls? And it says here they don’t often leave their breeding grounds. Not exactly long distance, if you ask me.” 

Harry shrugged. “Perhaps magic owls are different than muggle ones,” he offered. “We won’t know until we visit Burren.” 

Draco sighed and closed his notebook. “Alright. Shall we use the floo network to go to Weasley’s shop?” He asked. “I think it would be the simplest way to get there.” Apperation wasn’t permitted in the Ministry, all forms of entry had to be watched. 

Harry nodded and they made their way to the fireplaces on the first level. 

Draco watched him walk. He always had this swagger to him. He held himself as if he was more important that anyone else in the room. It reminded him of every other Gryffindor he had ever met. They thought they were entitled to something higher. Draco was always taught to look approachable. Have good posture, look  businessly, yet oddly welcoming. He spent more time learning to walk than most, he assumed. He was taught that his body language was meant to be polite and proper, but his face was meant to be stone cold. 

He, too, thought about Potter compared to himself. Potter had been the hero. He was on the right side of the war. Would it still be considered the ‘right’ side if he had lost? Draco came up with a million excuses as to why he joined the ‘wrong’ side. He was pressured into it by his family. He craved the power the Dark Lord claimed he was going to give him. He had a damaged childhood, where his father always wanted more from him, and joining the ‘wrong’ side would be the only way to get his father’s approval. He simply wanted to disagree with Potter. When Draco had originally joined the Dark Lord, there hadn’t really been another option. His father told him to, so he did. Out of fear for his life? He wasn’t sure. But it wouldn’t happen again. More was at stake now. He wasn’t an impressionable 16-year-old boy anymore. He had a child. He couldn’t make the same mistake again. He wouldn’t. 

“Ron might be a bit surprised, but it will be alright,” Harry said to break the silence. 

Draco nodded. 

“I’m really glad you’re taking this so well,” Harry muttered. The hallway was crowded and he didn’t really fancy anyone overhearing. If the word got out that he was being nice to Malfoy, nothing would really happen… he just didn’t want people to think he was being nice to Malfoy. 

“What do you mean, Potter? Did you expect me to throw a temper tantrum because there’s a little Death Eater reunion and I wasn’t invited?” Draco asked, chuckling to himself. 

Harry shook his head. “No, like you’re willing to work this out. You’re willing to show your dark mark. I dunno. Forget I mentioned it.” 

“I don’t hide from my past, Potter,” Draco said. “I own up to it. I may be a coward, but I know when I’ve done something wrong. Clever Slytherins, remember?” 

Harry sighed. “I don’t think you’d be sorted into Slytherin if you hadn’t had the family you did,” he said. 

“Of course I wouldn’t be. The people who raise us make us who we are. Which is why we have to be such a perfect family for Teddy,” Draco said. “We both had rather shitty childhoods. You had those unpleasant relatives- oh don’t look at me as if I don’t know. You’re Harry Potter, none of your life is private. They were hard on you and it made you brave. And annoyingly heroic. I had parents with bad views, who influenced me to have those same bad views. They set bad precedents. We can’t- we can’t do that to Teddy.” 

“Do you ever do anything for yourself?” Harry asked. The elevator was taking an unusually long time to reach level one. “You always say ‘we have to do it for Teddy’. Why can’t you just be a good person for yourself?” 

Draco laughed. “Now, that’s not very motivating, is it?” He asked. “I’ve got to work with Potter for my own sake! See, I don’t really care about my own sake anymore. I used to. All those months waiting to go into Azkaban… all those people telling you that you don’t matter… eventually, you start to believe it,” he said. Then, he realized who he was talking to. “Whatever. It doesn’t matter. I do it for Teddy because I don’t want him to become like me. Ah- here we are.” 

The elevator reached a halt and they reached the first level. Harry, to be quite honest, hadn’t been listening to whatever Malfoy had said. He was thinking about the soup he was going to make for supper. 

“Meet you at Ron’s,” Harry said, stepping into a fireplace beside Malfoy’s. “Weasley’s Wizard Wheezes,” he said as the fireplace filled with green flames. It was a bit tricky to say outloud, so he hoped Malfoy would appear in the right place. 

“Oi, mate, what are you doing here?” Ron asked, leaping four feet as Harry stepped out of the fireplace. 

“Sorry. Malfoy and I have to interview Mr. Burren and Madame Rosmerta again and you can’t apparate in the Ministry,” Harry said. 

Ron shrugged. “Well, I reckon you’re out of luck,” he commented, stroking a particularly unhappy Pigmy Puff. “Both of them called in sick today. Burren’s son opened up the shop and Three Broomsticks isn’t opening today.” 

“You’re kidding!” Harry said. 

Green flames lit the fireplace and Malfoy appeared. “What’s going on?” He asked when he saw Harry looking very unhappily out the window. 

“Ron said both Burren and Rosmerta aren’t in today. Burren’s son opened up shop and Three Broomsticks is closed,” Harry explained. “You don’t think…” 

“I don’t know,” Malfoy said. “It’s probably a coincidence. We can still ask Burren’s son about the hawk owls. I reckon he’s got to know a bit or two, right? Weasley- is anyone sure that they’re both sick? Has anyone actually spoken to them?” 

Ron shrugged. “I stopped by Rosmerta’s last night and she seemed fine. I don’t see Burren often. He doesn’t leave his shop often. I reckon he sleeps there most nights, to be quite honest. He loves those birds.” 

Draco frowned. “And Rosmerta? When does she leave?” 

“Three Broomsticks usually closes at midnight, so usually around there. She lives in one of the houses in the village. I’m not sure which one, though,” he said. The Pigmy Puff nipped his finger. “Oi! What was that for?” He shouted and began to stroke it again. 

Harry sighed. “Thanks for your help, Ron,” he said. He and Draco left the shop. 

“Do you think Teddy would like one of those things? Those Pigmy Puffs?” Draco asked, still looking at the shop.

“As long as it stays at your place,” Harry chuckled. 

“You’re right. We should get him a snake.” 

Harry shrugged. “I don’t mind. Parseltongue, remember?” He asked, grinning. 

Draco frowned. “What would a snake say to you? ‘Haarrrrryyyyyyyy… I poooooopedddd… bring me another raaaaaat!’” He said in a soft voice. Harry had to admit, it was pretty funny, but he bit his lip. 

They entered the owlery. It looked as if nothing had changed, apart from the man behind the counter. 

“Hello, you must be Mr. Burren’s son,” Malfoy said, shaking his hand.

“Yes, how may I help you?” He said. He seemed to be a little older than Harry and Draco and did not want to be working in his father’s owlery by any means. Harry couldn’t help but notice the poop stains on his jacket. “Wait, are you guys aurors?” He asked, noticing Harry and Draco’s ridiculous brown robes. 

“We are,” Draco said. “And we’ve come to ask you a few questions to help us solve the case of the missing Death Eater, Delano Cupperton. We questioned your father yesterday. He told us a lot of useful information, but I’m afraid there’s more we need to know. May we ask you some questions?” 

The son shrugged. “I don’t see why not. But I won’t be able to tell you much.” 

“That’s alright,” Harry said. “Did you speak to your father at all today?” He asked.

He shook his head. “No, sir. He sent me an owl saying he was sick and he couldn’t come in. Which is weird because he’s got a room in the back and he usually sleeps there. Doesn’t like leaving his owls alone. He wasn’t in there when I got here this morning.” 

“May we see the letter he sent you?” Malfoy asked, not looking up from his notebook. 

“Sure, I guess,” the man said. He pulled a letter out of his back pocket. Harry took it and looked at it. All it said was that he was sick and asked for his son to come man the shop. He didn’t say anything specific at all. 

“This letter is very vague,” Harry said. Draco looked over his shoulder to look at it. “May we keep it?” 

“Yeah, I don’t care. He doesn’t really like writing. He prefers to call but I don’t have a phone in my flat,” the son explained.

“Does your father keep any handwritten documentation in here?” Draco asked. 

The son nodded. “There’s a guide to the bird he hand wrote a couple years ago when I first started working,” he said. He handed Harry a thick packet. He held the note next to it and compared the writing. 

“The handwriting is completely different,” Malfoy muttered. Harry nodded. “Mr. Burren, besides your father, who could have written this note? Do you recognize the handwriting?” He asked. 

He shook his head. “No, sir. My father lives alone in the village. Would you like the address?” 

“That’d be very helpful. Thank you,” Malfoy said. 

Harry’s eyes wandered the bird guide as Mr. Burren wrote down his father’s address. He was looking for the hawk owls. They were on the very last page. 

 

_ Type: Hawk Owl  _

_ Notes: Eat small rodents daily. My favorite, treat them well. Used for long-distance mail. Can be used for day or night delivery. Very expensive.  _

 

“Malfoy, take a look at this,” Harry said, showing him the page. 

“Oh, yeah. Those are the hawk owls,” the son said, looking over. “My dad’s favorite. He keeps them in the back room because they don’t get on well with the other owls. They weren’t here when I got in today. We only have five of them, so I assumed they were all being used, but none of them have returned. My dad used one of those to send me that letter, which was a little weird. He’s very strict about the use of his hawk owls.” 

Malfoy gave a small smile and began to write things down again. “Thank you, Mr. Barren. You have been incredibly helpful.” 

“Why’d you wanna know about my dad and the hawk owls, if you don’t mind me asking, sirs?” He asked curiously. 

“We aren’t permitted to talk about the case while it’s still in progress, I’m afraid,” Harry said. “But we will check in on your father. We want to make sure he’s alright.” 

“Thank you, sirs.” 

Draco finished writing down what he needed about the hawk owls and they left. Both men were getting a bit warm in their robes as they walked down the street. Harry’s dress shoes clicked on the stones. 

“What did you were, Potter? Tap shoes?” Draco asked. “No matter. I’m after Mr. Burren Sr might be missing,” he said. “Let’s check his house right away. It’s in the village. And we should ask for Rosmerta’s while we’re there,” he said. 

Harry nodded. They made their way past all of the shops and down the street lined with houses. Malfoy checked the address every few moments to  make sure they were headed in the correct direction. All of the houses looked relatively the same.They were brick houses all in a line with brown doors and five windows. Some were slightly more decorated than others. 

“This is it,” Draco announced, marking up the steps to one of the houses. Harry followed. There was no doorbell, so Draco rapped the door with his fist several times. There was no reply. He knocked again. 

“Do we need a permit to go in?” Harry asked. “I didn’t go through auror training.” 

Draco shrugged. “I dunno,” he said. He knocked several more times. “Mr. Burren! It’s the two aurors you spoke to yesterday! We want to make sure you’re alright!” He said. Still no response. 

“Let’s check with some neighbors, ask for Rosmerta’s address, and then we’ll tell his son to check up on him,” Harry said. They ventured to the next door house and a lady in bright blue robes answered the door. “Hello, Ma’am. We’re aurors and we were wondering if we could ask you a few questions about your neighbor.” 

The lady sighed. “Well alright,” she huffed. She looked in her mid-forties and done with the world. She had a cup of tea in one hand and an aggressive-looking cat in the other. “Ask away, I suppose!” 

“When was the last time you saw your neighbor, Mr. Burren?” Malfoy asked. 

She sighed. “A few days ago, I suppose. He owns that owlery, you know. He loves those birds so much he sleeps with them! He doesn’t come by here often. I know when he does because he brings those awful birds. They’re very noisy.” 

“And you haven’t heard them for a few days?” Harry asked. 

“No, I suppose not,” she said. “He’s alright, isn’t he?” She asked. “He loves those noisy creatures, but he brings me fresh eggs on the holiday and I simply couldn’t do without them. His son used to babysit my children.” 

Harry sighed. “We aren’t sure where he is, ma’am. But don’t worry. We’ll find him soon. Would you happen to know the address of Madame Rosmerta?” 

The lady scoffed. “Well, sure. The whore lives just across the way,” she said, gesturing to the house across the street. “Owns that lousy pup, doesn’t she. We don’t need any more pubs in our neck of the woods, I’m telling you! You should see the creeps that come in there sometimes. Just a few months ago, a Death Eater near tried to kill her, I heard. But that’s just what the wind says, I suppose. I never bothered to talk to her.” 

“Thank you, ma’am,” Harry said. She closed the door and he and Draco made their way across the street. “What do you think?” He asked. 

Draco shrugged. “I don’t want to jump to conclusions,” he said, stepping up on the door. Once again, no answer. Draco must’ve knocked for ten minutes, still no answer. “I don’t want to jump to conclusions,” he said again, “but I don’t like this. I don’t like it one bit.” 

“Me neither,” Harry muttered. “We’ve got to present the case tomorrow. We should bring these disappearances up. Someone should be sent to find Rosmerta and Burren.” 

“I believe we’ll find them as soon as we find Cupperton,” Draco mumbled. He looked down at his notebook. “I want to run a check of every recorded hawk owl used for delivering magical letters.” 

“We don’t even know if they were the birds on Cupperton’s dark mark,” Harry said. 

“Yes, well, we can assume Cupperton used them to send those letters. Burren supposedly used one to send a letter to his son, which is not typical behavior. Now, Burren and the owls are missing. They’ve got something to do with this,” Draco grumbled, looking over his notes. 

“Right,” Harry said. 

“I don’t like this,” Draco said again. He was thinking of Teddy. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys!  
> I'm SO SORRY but there probably won't be another chapter out this week. I've got too much going on. I'll do my best, I promise!   
> Thanks for reading!  
> Lily


	9. Chapter Nine: I (Don't) Like This

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Draco and Harry continue their search for Cupperton and uncover several new clues. They report back their findings in a meeting with Glacia, which they really hope goes well. If it doesn't, Draco might not make it until dinner. Afterward, they eat together as a family for the first Teddy Trade.

“So what you’re telling me… is now we have  _ three  _ missing people, one a suspected Death Eater and two other witnesses, and you believe the primary missing person is trying to start another wizarding war?” Glacia asked early Thursday morning when Draco and Harry came in to report to her. “And you  _ still  _ don’t know where he is? Potter, Malfoy, this case was supposed to take the two of you no more than three days. Am I correct?” 

“Well, you see, ma’am, we-” Harry began. 

“ _ Am I correct?”  _

“Yes,” Harry mumbled. 

“Correct, ma’am,” Draco said softly. “We can discuss the case more thoroughly at the briefing meeting today, as well as discuss our plan.”

Glacia sighed and tapped her pen on the side of the desk. “Very well then,” she said. 

“Ma’am, there are a few more things we’ve got to do in Hogsmeade,” Harry said, leaning back so the front two legs of his chair were in the air. Draco hated when he did that. He was afraid it would slip and Potter would knock over his perfectly organized desks. He could see it now. 

“Go ahead. You won’t be much use to me here,” Glacia grumbled and walked away. 

Draco slammed down his notebook. “This has been going much slower than it should, Potter, so here’s the plan. We go to Hogsmeade and confirm that Rosmerta and Burren are missing. If they are, we have to file two missing person reports, which doesn’t really look good on our  part, but we do it anyway. Then, we rush back here as soon as possible to get ready for the meeting. No lunch break, Potter, there’s no time. Do you want pizza or Chinese food for dinner? I’m not cooking.” 

“Pizza- Malfoy, what are you talking about?” Harry asked. 

“The Teddy trade is tonight. You and Ginvera are bringing Teddy to my apartment and we’re having dinner,” Draco said, as if this was obvious. “She didn’t tell you?” 

Harry yawned and rubbed his eyes. “She might’ve. He climbed into bed with us at three AM and then wet the bed. Probably wasn’t the best idea to put him in a big-boy-bed and potty train him at the same time,” he mumbled. “So I don’t really remember anything from 3 AM until now. Actually, I seem to recall throwing the bedsheets out the window…” 

“Whatever, Potter,” Draco snarled. “Tomorrow, we’re going to search the hills. Bring your invisibility cloak.” 

“We’re actually searching the hills or we’re planning to search them and getting side-tracked again?” 

“I hate you. Let’s go.” 

\---

“Hello, welcome to- oh! It’s you!” Mr. Burren’s son was once again the only one behind the counter at the owlery. Harry noted that he seemed slightly less enthused today, if possible. He was wearing the same clothes he had the day before and now the grand owlery looked slightly more depressed and smelled significantly worse. It usually was large and energetic, bustling with noise and movement as owls swooped about and cooed to their hearts’ content. Now, they all remained stationary. The ceiling must have been over 200 feet high and arched with a glass sunroof. The room  was a perfect circle, with ledges jutting out of the walls for birds to perch on. In the back of the room was the long desk where Mr. Burren stood, lazily slouched over some books. 

“It’s a bit… dreary in here today,” Harry observed after greeting the man. 

“Yes, well, they all miss my father,” he said, looking up at the birds who sat glued to their pedestals. “I suppose I don’t bring about the same joy and energy as he did. Tried to get to him last night. I knocked for about an hour, I suppose. I didn’t hear anything. So I went in through the window. He wasn’t there.” 

“What did the house look like?” Draco asked, taking out his notebook again. 

“Well… immaculate,” the man said. “Which is extremely odd. You see, my father rarely goes there. He mostly just sleeps here. When he does go home, he doesn’t bother cleaning up after himself because he so rarely returns. I don’t think I’ve seen it clean since the day he bought it. But yesterday, it was perfect. Not an inch of dust anywhere.” 

Draco shuddered as he wrote this down. “Thank you, Mr. Burren. We’re going to file a missing person report for your father as soon as we can. Someone will be on it immediately.” 

The man looked confused. “Wait! I want you two to solve it.” 

Harry shrugged. “Many apologies, Mr. Burren, but we’ve got the Cupperton case to deal with at the moment.”

The man turned very angry. “You trust me, sirs. When you find that man, you’ll find my father. I don’t like anything about this. I may not know much about this case, but I don’t like it one bit.” 

“Neither do we,” Draco muttered. They said their goodbyes and left the shop. “Potter, remind me we still have to check the records of every hawk owl the Ministry has recorded. We also should check to see if Rosmerta has any known relatives. We’re going to need to search Burren’s house, now that we have reason. We’re going to need a permit to search Rosmerta’s though,” he said. 

Harry yawned, almost stumbling over. “That’s a lot to remember,” he muttered. 

Draco scoffed. “Sure is, Potter. And you still haven’t answered me. Italian or Chinese food?” 

“I dunno, I kind of want Indian,” Harry said, scratching his  fluffy black hair as they began to walk towards the road where Burren lived. 

“Will Teddy eat Indian?” Draco asked. “Although I seem to recall Astoria saying she’s got a weak stomach…” 

They continued down the road for a small while before stopping at Burren’s house. Harry knocked on the door several times, but knew there would be no response. 

“ _ Alohomora _ ,” Draco said, trying the door. It didn’t unlock. “Of course the bloke has defenses around his house. Doesn’t even sleep here,” he grumbled, shoving his wand back into his pocket. He was getting quite flustered standing there. It was too warm for their thick brown robes that they were forced to wear. 

Harry reached into his robes and pulled a moleskin pouch off from around his neck. He opened it and reached in. “I’ve got something for this,” he muttered to a very confused Draco. He fished around for a moment before pulling out a penknife and returning the pouch to his neck. “Sirius Black gave it to me for Christmas when we were in school. It can open any lock and untie any knife,” he explained, turning it in his hand. “Well… sort of. It kind of melted when I tried to use it on a door in the Ministry in fifth year, but Hermione Granger did her best to repair it.”

Draco shrugged. “Give it a try.” 

Harry wedged the blade into the lock and it magically turned. “I can’t believe it! We’re in!” He said. He threw the door open and the two men stepped in. Burren’s son had been right, it was immaculate. 

From the doorway, Harry could see through the sitting room and into the kitchen on the left. On the right, there was a staircase. Everything looked perfectly tidy, like it was right where it belonged. Beside the door, Harry could see shards of glass where Burren’s son had broken through the window, but he had repaired it and everything else was spotless. 

“I’ll go upstairs,” Draco said. “Don’t sneak up on me this time.” 

“No promises,” Harry muttered, but Draco was already halfway gone. He slowly wandered into the sitting room. For some reason, he felt a bit naked without Malfoy by his side. He wandered about, not sure what to do. There was no evidence of a fight, of people living there, of anything. He flipped over some couch cushions for good measure, but found nothing. He quietly wandered into the kitchen, floorboards creaking beneath his feet. 

“See anything, Potter?” Malfoy shouted from upstairs.

“Nope!” Harry shouted back. He opened the fridge curiously. “Hey- do you want hamburgers for dinner?” He called, observing a jar of half-eaten pickles. The sell-by date was four months ago. That was evidence, right? The Death Eaters clearly had missed the fridge. There was also a moldy pie and several apples that looked as if they had been pecked to death. 

“And poison our little Teddy? I don’t think so. Something healthier,” Draco said, appearing behind Harry. “Browsing the refrigerator, are we?” He asked slyly. 

Harry scowled. “Look at this,” he said, handing Malfoy the pickles. 

“Oh, yes. Pickles. We should definitely bring these back to the Ministry-” 

“They expired four months ago!” Harry shouted. 

Draco frowned and rotated the jar in his hands. “Four months ago? They’re pickles… aren’t they supposed to be good forever?” He asked. 

Harry shrugged.  “You’re the nutritionist here, Mr. I-can’t-feed-our-child-hamburgers,” he grumbled and went back into the fridge. It did not smell good. He wasn’t sure how the kidnappers (assuming that’s what happened) could’ve missed it. 

“What else is in there?” Draco asked, crouching over Harry to see. 

“A moldy pie, some apples that were converted into bird food, I  _ think  _ that used to be pork, but I’m not sure-” 

“Wait! Go back to the apples,” Draco said. He placed the pickles back on the shelf and picked up an apple. “Harry, do you see this?” He asked, sticking the produce in his face. 

Harry shoved him away. “Yes, I see your apple, Draco. What’s with you and apples?” 

Draco rolled his eyes. “This isn’t about that! Look! The peck-marks in it look like they’ve only just yellowed. If this apple was as old as everything else in here, it would have completely decayed by now, right? But look at it. It’s almost completely fresh,” he said, observing it. “Think- what does that mean?”

“He really liked apples to the point of magically preserving them?” Harry asked. 

“No! If he liked them that much, do you honestly think he’d let his owls get to them?” Draco asked. “Plus, the holes are yellowing. So it’s not magically preserved. It’s fresh! Which means it was put here recently! One or two days ago recently! Look, it hasn’t even bruised anywhere. Which means Burrens put this in here before he disappeared- but why would he want to keep an apple his owls pecked at?- or his assumed kidnappers did!” He said, shouting now. “Why would they put this in there and not take out the rotting food if they were cleaning? Why did they put it in there? Was it for us? We have to get the beak marks analyzed to see if it was Hawk Owls,” he said. 

Harry yawned again. He checked his watch. It was the same one Mr. and Mrs. Weasley had given him for his seventeenth birthday years ago. “Hate to burst your bubble, Malfoy, but we’ve got our meeting in 20 minutes and I think it would be in our best interest to attend. Considering it’s our meeting.” 

Draco swore loudly. “Right. Quickly, we’ve got to search the kitchen and then leave. I do hope Burren is connected to the floo network!” 

They quickly tore apart the kitchen, looking for anything out of the ordinary. They found more rotten food and four more of the perfect apples with peck marks in them. They gathered the apples, threw them in Harry’s bag (“it’s going to get my things all sticky!” He whined), and used the floo network to appear back in the Ministry. They had about five minutes to get downstairs and into the conference room, and the elevators couldn’t move fast enough. 

“We’re not going to make it, we’re not going to make it!” Draco chanted as they slowly descended. “Glacia’s going to have my head on a pike!” 

“What about my head?” Harry asked. 

He scoffed. “You’re Harry Potter! She gets paid double just for having you on the team. If she killed you, the world would be in chaos. If she killed me, there’d be a celebration, I suppose.” 

Harry chuckled. “Please don’t die. I need you to take Teddy. Speaking of which, now I kind of want Greek food.” 

“Do you know a place?” Draco asked. 

“Nope. But if you live until dinner, I’m sure we’ll find one,” Harry said with a grin. 

Draco’s heart skipped a beat. Nerves. Of course. “Right,” he said. “I don’t really like Greek though. Astoria said something about a new sushi place-” the doors to the elevator slowly opened. “THANK MERLIN! We’ve got three minutes! We’re going to make it!” He said, staring down the hallway. The conference room was at the very end. “You go, I’ve got to grab a few more papers,” he said. 

The two men broke into a sprint, racing each other down the hallway until Draco went into his cube to find the paper. Harry ran toward the conference room, his feet thudding on the low-budget fake marble floor. He pulled open the door and tried to compose himself as best he could before making his way to the front of the room. 

“Mr. Potter. So glad you could make it,” Glacia said from the head of the long table. She did not sound the least bit glad. 

Harry smiled and nodded. “Glad you could come. My partner should be here in just a moment.” His heart races 1000 miles a minutes and he was fighting the urge to pant like a dog. He could feel the round shape of the apple in his bag press against his leg. 

Draco smoothly and swiftly opened the door and entered as if he owned the place. Harry suspected he looked like a wreck standing next to Draco. “Hello. Please excuse me,” he said, with a glance at the clock. He was right on time. 

It took them an hour and a half to explain the entirety of the case and the evidence they had found. From the shop keepers’ reports, to the dark mark, to the apples they had found in the kitchen of Burren’s house. 

“And with all of this fieldwork we’ve been doing, we haven’t had much time to analyze what we’ve found,” Draco said, pacing, “but we’ve come to the conclusion that it’s possible that a man named Delano Cupperton is recruiting former Death Eaters who haven’t been captured by the Ministry. We suspect it was him who kidnapped Burren and Rosmerta so they would not be able to assist us in our search for him.” 

Harry nodded. “Our plan is to file missing person reports for Burren and Rosmerta, and then complete some research. We have to find records of all Hawk Owls used for wizarding mail, analyze the beak marks in these apples, and make a request for a permit to search Rosmerta’s house,” he finished. “Does anyone have questions?” 

He watched Glacia run this over in her head, her tongue in her cheek. He looked for anything- any sign of approval. After three minutes of waiting, she nodded. 

“You two seem to have your work cut out for you,” she finally said. She took a deep breath. “Dismissed,” she said. Everyone got out of their seats and returned to their offices. She gave one last long look at Harry and Draco before leaving. 

Draco let out a breath he had been holding for hours at this point. “She didn’t ask us anything! She didn’t say anything!” He shouted. “I’ve never seen her that… that… content before! It was like she was confused! Did you see her?” He asked, grabbing Harry’s arm. 

“She didn’t criticize us or anything!” Harry shouted. His eyes were watering a bit. “She didn’t even look like she knew what to do! Did you see her? She was thinking for like five minutes straight!” He cried.

“Let’s go out to eat to celebrate! There’s a really good cheap place right by my apartment! They have a huge kid’s menu!” Draco said. 

“Sounds perfect!” Harry replied. The both froze for a moment. Draco slowly let go of Harry’s arm. “But we have to get back to work,” Harry said. “We’ve got too much to worry about right now.” 

\--

At 6:15 precisely, Harry returned home to find Teddy and Ginny having a dance party. Ginny was twirling Teddy around and he was giggling so hard, Harry thought he was going to fall over. 

“Oh, hello, dear!” Ginny giggled, scooping Teddy up. 

“Good day?” Harry asked, chuckling as he set his bag down next to the door. 

Ginny grinned. “You’ll never guess! My boss loved my last article on the gender representation in the Ministry so much, it’s going to be the front page in  _ three different papers  _ tomorrow! And, Teddy peed in the potty  _ twice  _ at daycare today! Miss Lola said she’d never seen a kid learn that fast before!” 

Harry laughed and gave them both a hug. “That’s great! Malfoy and I had a big meeting today and Glacia didn’t know what to say! She was baffled! In a good way! She’s always able to find something wrong with what we’re doing! So we decided we’re going out for dinner. We’re meeting Malfoy and Astoria at their apartment in 15 minutes. I’ve got to get changed.” 

Ginny set Teddy down on the floor and took Harry’s face in her hands. “I’m so proud of you,” she said and kissed him. Harry was still thinking about dinner.

“I’m proud of you!” He said. 

She laughed. “Not for the meeting. For getting on so well with Draco. It’s almost like you grew up or something!” She said. 

“Or something,” Harry answered. 

“Teddy peed!” Teddy announced, stepping on Harry’s feet to get his attention. “Teddy peed with Miss Lola!” 

Harry laughed and picked him up. “I’m proud of you, too. Are you ready to go out to dinner with Uncle Draco?” He asked. 

“Snake come?” 

“Snake can come,” Harry said. He put Teddy down and ran his hand through his hair. “I”m going to get changed and we’ll leave,” he said, stepping into his and Ginny’s bedroom. 

\--

The two families met at Draco’s apartment. Harry was astounded by the size of it. It wasn’t really an apartment as much as a large house stacked on top of a larger house. It was three stories high. The floor was made of white marble, and it was completely open-concept. They took the private elevator up to Draco’s floor and stepped right into his kitchen, which flowed right into the sitting area, which flowed into the dining area, which had a spectacular view of London out its floor-to-ceiling windows. There was a black winding staircase that wound over the elevator to the next floor and then around to the next. 

“Wow,” Harry commented, looking around. 

“Yeah, it’s pretty great, huh?” Malfoy asked, stepping in. “So you found it alright?” 

Harry laughed. “Oh yeah. The elevator into the kitchen certainly helped.” 

Teddy let go of Harry’s hand and ran to Draco, who got down on his knees to hug him. “Hey, kiddo!” He laughed. “You still got your snake?” He asked. 

“Snake!” Teddy cried, holding up the toy. 

“Hello, Draco,” Ginny said, shaking his hand. “This is gorgeous, how’d you manage to get it so quickly?” She asked with a hint of jealousy in her voice as she looked around. Harry knew she was comparing it to their tiny, smelly apartment. 

Draco grinned. “Thank you. My fiance knows many people,” he answered. 

Astoria herself came down the staircase. “Oh, hello!” She said. The way she came down the staircase, Harry would’ve thought she was wearing a ball gown  or something. She was like Draco, she had to make an entrance. Both of them were wearing only jeans and simple shirts, but both looked absolutely glowing as Astoria stepped down and took Draco’s hand. “You must be Harry Potter and Ginny Weasley. It’s so nice to meet you!” She said. 

“And you,” Ginny said. “Though I believe we’ve met before. Many, many years ago.” 

Astoria frowned. “Yes, I’m afraid that’s right. I’m so very sorry, Ginny. I hope you’ll excuse my behavior,” she said, taking one of Ginny’s hands. 

Ginny nodded. “S’alright,” she said clumsily. 

“What happened?” Harry asked. Draco looked equally as curious. 

“I’m afraid I was a bit of a bully back in school,” Astoria admitted, looking very embarrassed by this. “I made fun of Luna Lovegood quite often. She was in the year above me, I thought she was a bit ridiculous back then. Ginny stood up for her.” 

Ginny shrugged. “It’s okay. I think you’re the reason Ginny and I are so close now.” 

“Well, I’m going to show Teddy his room,” Draco said, holding the toddler’s hand. “Potter, want to join us?” He asked, nodding to the staircase. 

Harry shrugged. “Sure,” he said and followed them to the staircase. 

“I wasn’t about to leave you there to endure months of lady talk,” Draco explained as they climbed. He had placed Teddy on his hip. The stairway was too thin for them to be walking side-by-side. 

“Lady talk isn’t really lady talk with Ginny,” Harry said. 

Draco laughed. “I know. Astoria is quite interested in Quidditch herself and has read several of Ginny’s articles. Although she didn’t agree with the latest one about some new Seeker or something. It made her a bit mad, I think. Ginny was trashing him and Astoria thought he was quite good.” 

“Yeah. You should see the amount of hate mail that gets sent to us after those articles go out,” Harry muttered. 

Finally, they reached the second floor. It wasn’t as grand as the first. It was one small hallway with three rooms. One that looked like a master, a bathroom, and Teddy’s room at the end of the hallway. 

“Here we are,” Draco said, steering the toddler into his room. It was very large and had a thick blue carpet, which was a change from the white marble floors in the rest of the house. There was a small racecar shaped bed pressed against the wall on the right, a desk in the back, a wardrobe on the left, and mountains of toys piled everywhere else. “The bathroom is right next door if you have to use the potty and my room is just across the hall, okay?” He asked Teddy. 

Teddy shrieked and dove into the mountain of toys. 

“You’ve just made his room at my apartment look like a dollhouse,” Harry said, looking around. “What’s upstairs?” He asked. 

Draco shrugged. “Just Astoria’s room and a guest room. I thought it would be best for me to be down here with Teddy, after what you said about him wanting to sleep with you every night.”  

“Why doesn’t Astoria sleep with you?” Harry asked. 

Draco frowned. “That’s a bit personal, don’t you think?” He asked. Before Harry could apologize, he took Teddy’s hand. “I think it’s time to go to dinner. I don’t know about you two, but I’m famished!” 

\--

Both Harry and Draco left dinner feeling very happy. They had been entertained by Teddy singing them songs and squealing at everything and by Ginny and Astoria arguing over Quidditch for a full hour. They chose not to discuss work- they couldn’t talk about the case to anyone until it was over and they didn’t want to risk anyone else hearing, but it turned out they had plenty of other things to talk about. 

“Bye, Teddy bear,” Harry said, kissing Teddy’s forehead. “I’ll see you on Saturday, okay?” He asked. 

Teddy nodded sleepily and rested his head on Draco’s shoulder. 

“It’s going to be a bit warm, I was thinking we could go to the beach,” Draco said. “Don’t forget your cloak for work tomorrow.” 

Ginny frowned. “Your cloak, Harry- why do you need the cloak for work tomorrow?” 

“What cloak?” Astoria asked.

“We’re not allowed to talk about it, remember?” Harry asked. “But I will bring it. See you in the morning,” he said. He felt like he should hug Draco or something, so he waved and walked down the street with Ginny. 

For once, he was happy with his odd family. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> SO IT TURNS OUT TEDDY'S FULL NAME ISN'T THEODORE. It's Edward. I can't believe no one has yelled at me yet. This is what I get for not doing my research beforehand. So if you're wondering why his name magically turned into Edward, that would be why. This is according to Harry Potter wiki by the way. 
> 
> I think I'll be able to post another chapter tomorrow! Sorry this was so delayed, but I made sure to make it nice and long and juicy for you!   
> Thank you so much for all of the support you've given me! Please keep commenting! I'd love to hear what you guys think!  
> Lily


	10. Chapter Ten: Mountain Clues

Draco stepped down and his foot sank three inches into the thick mud. Luckily, today he had decided to trade in his nice work shoes for his gross sneakers. He wasn’t sure why he owned them, but now he was glad he did. 

“Have we gotten anything back about the apples yet?” Harry asked, being careful not to step where Draco had. 

“No. The research team thinks it’s ridiculous, so I suspect we won’t for a while. They told me they didn’t want to waste their time on a half eaten apple,” Draco grumbled. He stepped on a rock to avoid sinking further into the muck. They had traversed past Hogsmeade, past the houses, and to the mountainous region beyond, where numerous ex-Death Eaters had been caught before. There were plenty of caves in the mountains for them to hiding and a large amount of wildlife to hunt. And its location was just outside a town, so they’d still be somewhat connected. Perfect place to hold two kidnapped shop owners. 

Harry sighed. They hadn’t even gotten to the mountains yet, they were in the grass preceding the mountains. They couldn’t apparate, someone would hear them. So they had to walk. “Did Teddy keep you up at all?” Harry asked.

“Fell out of his bed at 11. I wasn’t sleeping yet, just reading, so I let him come into my bed. He fell asleep and I didn’t bother to move him,” Draco said. He picked up a stick and poked the ground to see if it was stable. “He had three accidents right outside the bathroom, though.” 

Harry laughed. “Yeah. He keeps trying to tell me when he has to pee instead of going to the bathroom, so we never make it in time.” 

“Exactly!” Draco wailed. His stick when through the ground like butter. 

“Need me to take him back?” Harry taunted. 

“That’s ridiculous, Potter, stop spouting obscenities,” Draco mumbled. “I don’t suppose you have any mountain climbing experience, do you?” He asked. 

Harry shook his head. “Nah, but Sirius Black lived here for a while in our fourth year and Hermione, Ron and I would come to  visit him when we could. Goodness, it’s times like there were you realize what an illegal child you were, huh?” He commented. 

“Sorry. Can’t relate,” Draco muttered. 

The wind blew Harry’s hair in all directions, but they marched on. It started getting rockier and rockier as they got closer to the mountains. It wasn’t helpful that it had rained the night before, but they were lucky to have clear weather today. It was a bit too warm, both men wore t-shirt and jeans. Draco hadn’t even bothered to do his hair, much to Harry’s surprise (“What, do you think I was  _ born  _ with slicked back hair, Potter?”). Harry had swapped his work bag for a rucksack that now housed a lunch he had packed, his invisibility cloak, Draco’s notebook, and several water bottles. He thought back to all of those days in the woods when he had packed, thinking of what he had wished he had. 

“So I did some research on the Hawk Owls,” Draco said, poking another spot on the ground with his muddy stick. This one was safe to step on, but he got too cocky and the next wasn’t. “Eugh. Mud. Anyway, they’ve been slowly disappearing for a long time now. Part of it is because they’re not being used in the wizarding world so much anymore. Apparently, they’re unreliable unless you train them and they’re super hard to train. Meaning if you don’t train them, they might get bored of whatever letters you’re sending and take a detour around Paris for a few years.” 

“Paris?” Harry asked. 

Draco sighed. “Not Paris in particular, but they disappear for long periods of time. You get the point. Some think they fly to Canada to nest, using your letters as insulations for their tree-hole nests, and then come back in a few years after they’re done breeding.” 

“Huh,” Harry muttered. “So what does that mean for us?” 

“It means- oh!” Draco slipped again, stumbling backwards for a moment. “It means almost nothing right now, but it could be useful later. Maybe the birds are disappearing to work for this Cupperton guy and then he sends them back home. But the fact they’ve been steadily disappearing might help our point.” 

“I wonder how you train them,” Harry said. The flat ground was slowly starting to slope upward, taking him off guard. 

“I dunno, with those Owl Treaties or something, I suppose. Why, thinking of starting your owl owlery?” Draco mocked. 

Harry shrugged. “I’m just thinking at maybe if it’s something easy, Cupperton has a bunch trained. But if he has all of the disappearing ones, why would he need Burren’s? Or maybe he needs Burren to help train them.” 

Draco nodded. “I think you’re giving this guy too much credit. He can’t be a very good wizard, because I’ve never heard of him before. If he was a good wizard, he’d move up You-Know-Who’s ranks much fast, but I never heard of him. He must’ve been rock bottom,” he said. 

“Maybe,” Harry said. “But he gives me really bad feelings. Maybe he was smart not to get high in the ranks. Maybe he stayed low so he wouldn’t have such hard tasks and he wouldn’t have to risk his life.” 

Neither of them said anything for a while as they proceeded. It was getting harder and harder to continue as they went. The rocks kept getting bigger until they were climbing boulders. And they were getting slippery, too. The sun was beating down on them, but that seemed to do nothing to dry the rocks. Draco’s sneakers were brown with mud and Harry had torn his on a jagged rock. It was mishap after mishap. At this point, the Death Eaters would hear them coming much before they saw them. 

“I hate… the outdoors,” Draco grumbled, placing his palms on a boulder and pulling himself up. Harry was several steps ahead of him. How was Potter better at this, too? 

He turned and gave Draco a stupid grin that made his heart beat a little faster than normal. Merlin’s beard, he was so out of shape. Not Potter, though. Potter looked like he had worked out every day of his life, but Draco knew otherwise. He had that stupid Quidditch body that all of the Quidditch stars had and that Draco had never developed. It was stupid. Potter hadn’t played Quidditch in years, how did he still have a  _ gorgeous-  _ stupid, that is. How did he still have a _ stupid  _ figure. He hadn’t looked like that when they were in school! He always looked nearly starved in school! It wasn’t fair. 

“I dunno, I kind of like this,” Harry said, placing his hands on his hips. Draco wanted to gag. Why did Potter have to be such a model? A terrible, stupid model. “The fresh air and all. It’s better than sitting in the office, right?” 

“Suppose so,” Draco grumbled. 

“Another boulder up ahead,” Harry muttered. Draco took this moment to realize that he was, in fact, taller than Potter. Good. He had  _ something  _ going for him. 

“What should we do?” Draco asked. 

“Climb it,” Harry said as they face the boulder. It was a bit higher than Harry was tall and reached Draco’s height perfectly. Harry watched Draco’s hair blow lightly in the wind. He wasn’t sure what amused him so much about Draco not doing his hair, but it made him immensely satisfied. “Give me a boost and I’ll pull you up,” Harry suggested. 

Draco sighed and got down on his knee to hoist Harry up. They managed to do it after several minutes of struggling and scrambling and “OW! Potter, you’ve crushed my fingers!” and several more screams in pain. 

“Wow… look at the view here,” Harry muttered, standing on top of the boulder. It took Draco several moments to figure out that Harry was talking about the horizon and not himself standing magnificently on the rock. And by magnificently, he meant stupidly. Harry got down and laid on his chest, dropping his arm  over the side of the boulder so he could pull Draco up. “Come on, then!” He said.

Draco took his hand and sparks flew through his arm. Probably a side effect of the unbreakable vow that had made for Teddy. “Don’t slip, Potter, or we both go down,” Draco grumbled, admiring the very far drop.  Harry laughed, but it made Draco even more nervous. Harry gave him a yank and hoisted him up, Draco used his feet and his hands to propel himself upward. He made it up with half the struggle it had taken to get Harry up, 

“Would you look at that?” Draco whispered, looking off the edge to see the view. He could see everything. The rows of houses, Hogsmeade, and the giant castle glaring at him in the distance. 

“It’s a bit different from how you remember it, isn’t it?” Harry asked. 

He was right. The towers weren’t quite right. They were too bright, too new, and in all of the wrong places. Draco had heard that after the war, the castle had magically regrown itself. Well, it had done it wrong.  It was a bit sad to know Teddy wasn’t going to grow up in the same Hogwarts Draco had fallen in love with as a kid. Well, it would never be the same Hogwarts without Potter in it. That was certain. 

Draco spun around and faced the path in front of them. As they neared summer, the days were getting longer and the sun didn’t seem any lower than it had an hour ago. It continued to beat down in his back uncomfortably, but it seemed as though they were approaching a shady part of the mountain. “Do you think these trails have always been here?” Draco asked, starting to walk again. “Like, who put them here?” 

Harry shrugged. “I never really thought about it,” he admitted. “I’m glad they’re here, though. Otherwise, we’d be very lost very quickly.” He wandered down the path and into the shade of the tall rocks. 

“How is there snow at the top of this thing,” Draco spat, squinting to look up at it. “We don’t have to go that high, do we?” 

“I dunno. We haven’t seen any signs of life yet, have we?” 

“This thing is huge! How are we supposed to search it in one day? In one month?” 

“Malfoy, quit your complaining or I’m going to hurl myself off the side of this mountain and you’ll be forced to potty train Teddy by yourself.” 

“Don’t joke about that, Potter!” 

They continued on like this for quite a bit before they reached the top of the peak they were on. Not knowing how to continue, they wandered down the side and up another peak before stopping for a quick lunch. After lunch, they continued their search up the mountain.

Harry remained with his eyes glued to the ground. He wasn’t sure what he was looking for- a footprint, anything. Anything that could prove a person was once here and could possibly lead them to Cupperton. 

“Wait, Potter, here,” Draco said, pointing to the side of the trail. He was whispering, as if whoever was there hadn’t heard their bickering for miles. “It looks like someone’s pushed these two shrubs to the side to make a path,” he said. 

Harry wandered over to look. “Yeah, I think you’re right,” he muttered. “I’m  going to put on the cloak, you wait here with my bag,” he whispered. He handed Draco his rucksack and pulled out the invisibility cloak. He hadn’t worn it for ages, it fit like a normal cloak on him now. He pulled the hood over his head. “Can you see me?” He asked. 

“No,” Draco said, staring at the space Harry once occupied. “I”m going to hide behind this boulder incase anyone comes.” 

“Right, see you in a bit. I’m leaving now,” Harry said. Draco saw the shrubs rattle as Harry climbed through. Then, he saw nothing. He wandered off the opposite side of the trail to boulder that was several feet away. He crouched behind it, holding Harry’s bag. 

Harry wandered down the not-very-worn path for about five minutes before he reached a large, black cave. Judging by the way it had cracks down the side and it pressed up against the surrounding boulders, it had been enlarged magically. This was exactly what he and Draco had been looking for! He stepped tentatively into the cave, looking around for anything suspicious. It seemed to expand for ages, he couldn’t see where it ended. The light stopped about four feet in front of him, so he crept forward, being careful to remain silent. He kept close to one of the sides of the cave so he wouldn’t get lost as he moved. He still couldn’t see any signs of anyone being there. Until he heard cooing. 

It was short, abrupt, and unhappy. Then, it happened again. “Ah, ah, ah, ah! Ah, ah, ah, ah!” The creature cooed with a hoarse voice. It sounded like a bird, Harry observed. He stepped forward and a massive bird flew from the shadows. 

“Hawk owl,” Harry whispered to himself as he watched the bird fly away. 

That was all he needed to see. He hurried out of the cave and down the path to find Draco crouched behind the boulder anxiously. Coming up the path was a hoard of ten figures, all wearing black cloaks. In a few moments, they would spot Draco. Harry hurried to the rock and crouched beside him. “Malfoy, it’s me,” he said almost silently. 

Draco gasped in surprise, but recovered quickly. “Let me under that thing, Potter, they’re going to see me,” he hissed as the figures got closer. Harry could hear their laughter as they drew nearer. Harry lifted part of the cloak over Draco so they were both almost completely covered a the figures arrived beside the boulder. 

“I still don’t understand why we can’t apparate here everyday instead of walking up this damn mountain,” one said to another in a deep voice. 

“Boss says the noise will scare the owls. It’s quieter to walk,” said the other, sounding very annoyed. “I don’t get his whole thing with the owls. I mean, sure they look cool and they get the job done, but they leave rat bones all over the place. Disgusting.” 

“Eugh,” the other one said. Then, they along with the rest of their group disappeared down the path to the cave. 

“That’s them,” Harry breathed. “We’ve got to attack.” 

“No!” Draco hissed. “Not without backup. We know where they are now. Did you see how many there were? Like… 12. You may be the fabulous Harry Potter, but our chances of beating them are little to none. We can report to Glacia and have a team by tomorrow.” 

“Tomorrow might be too late!” Harry insisted. 

“Keep your voice down, Potter. Tomorrow won’t be too late. You heard him, they have to walk up here everyday. Tomorrow, we’ll have a team waiting for them. The two of us can’t take on them alone, Potter. Think of Teddy.” 

Harry took a deep breath. Draco was right, of course. If the attack  _ did  _ go wrong, Teddy would be completely out of family. He and Malfoy were all he had left, like it or not. “Fine,” Harry grumbled. This was the closest he had ever been to Draco, apart from that time he fell on him in the shrieking shack. He could feel the other man’s breath on his shoulder. Strangely, he didn’t feel the urge to shove him away. “Do you think we’re safe to come out now?” He asked.

Draco looked around. “Yes, but keep this thing out incase more come,” he said. Harry pulled the cloak off of them and took his rucksack back. “We’ve got to tell Glacia,” Draco said. “We have to get to the Ministry as quickly as possible.”

“Let’s apparate to Ron’s,” Harry suggested. 

“They’ll hear us,” Draco argued. He grabbed Harry’s arm and began to tug him down the path. “We have to get far enough away that they won’t hear or there might not be anything to find tomorrow.” 

They quickly climbed about halfway down before they decided it was safe enough to disapparate. 

“Oi! What have I told you about warning me?” Ron asked as they appeared in his shop. 

“Sorry, mate. It’s an emergency,” Harry explained quickly before leaping into the fireplace. “See you tonight. Ministry of Magic!” He shouted into the fire before disappearing. He waited by the fire for several minutes to wait for Malfoy before they both ran to the elevators to get to level three. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello guys!   
> Sorry this chapter is a day late! I had the worst stomach bug I've ever had in my life. It was not fun!! 
> 
> I have to say this isn't my favorite chapter. I'm not sure why, I just don't really feel great about it. I started it and I wasn't really sure where it was going, and you can kind of tell. I think I exhausted my writing skills on an English project I had to work on... I had to google what sounds hawk owls make, though, so that was fun!   
> This might be the last chapter for a while. I'm busy for the next few days and then I'm going to Disney World with my family, so I wont have much time to write. Sorry! 
> 
> Thanks for reading! Hope you have a great day!  
> Lily


	11. Chapter Eleven: Stale Bird Dung

“It’s Saturday, love,” Ginny mumbled, rolling over onto her side as Harry scrambled to get out of bed. 

“Sorry! Work!” Harry said, pulling on his robes. He debated kissing her cheek before he left, but it seemed as though she was already asleep again. He watched her chest rise and fall under the covers. His best friend. Was that all she was to him? His best friend? His heart no longer fluttered when he saw her. He still thought she was the most beautiful girl in the world, but he admired her. He no longer longed to hold her in his arms. Maybe this was what love was like? Harry wasn’t sure, but he couldn’t worry about it now.

He didn’t waste time walking to the Ministry and used the floo network. 

“Well, look who decided to show up!” Malfoy snarled, waiting impatiently in front of the fireplace when Harry arrived. His arms were folded and he tapped his foot impatiently on the marble floors.

“Sorry,” Harry muttered. He looked around. This was the emptiest he had ever seen the Ministry, second to the time he broke in when he was 15. Some people bustled around, but most seemed to be sleeping in. 

Draco huffed. “It doesn’t matter. We’ve got a team following us to the mountains in 5 minutes. I hope you’re ready.” 

“As ready as I’ll ever be,” Harry mumbled. 

“Right,” Draco said. There was a silence between them, the only sound in the lobby being the shuffling of people around them and Draco’s anxiously tapping foot. “I got the tattoo,” he said abruptly and suddenly, startling Harry a bit. 

“What?” Harry muttered. 

Draco sighed and rolled up his sleeve to show Harry the tattoo. His dark mark was now surrounded with a vine of thick, bright flowers. “Teddy picked the colors out, but most of them are narcissus flowers. For my mother, of course,” he said, running a finger over the design. It made Harry’s heart swell for a moment. For Teddy, of course. They stared at the tattoo for several moments. “He called me Da-da today.” 

Harry frowned. “He did what?” 

“Teddy called me Da-da.” 

“You aren’t his father, and neither am I. Remus Lupin is an-” 

“I knew you were going to say that, Potter,” Draco grumbled, pulling the sleeve of his robes back over his tattoo. Harry was a bit disappointed. He would have stared at it all day long. “Like it or not, Lupin is dead. I may not have known him as well as you did, but I do know a few things. I know he was friends with your father, and I know he never wanted to see you grow up fatherless. I know he would feel the same for his son. He can’t do anything for Teddy now. It’s up to us. I’m fairly sure Lupin would want it that way,” he said. 

“Even together, we can’t be half the father Lupin would have been,” Harry mumbled. 

Draco scoffed. “Speak for yourself, Potter. But it doesn’t matter. We are what Teddy has now. Not Lupin. And you heard the Gillings lady, Teddy needs the most full family we can give him and he’s never going to have a full family if you don’t raise him like your son.” 

“I do raise him like my son!” 

“But he doesn’t look at you like a father. And that’s what matters,” Draco snarled. “It doesn’t matter if you’re the best father there is as long as Teddy doesn’t agree. Take it from me. I’ve read every single parenting book I could get my hands on. Statistically speaking, I should be the perfect father. But the statistically perfect father isn’t the same as the perfect father for Teddy.” 

Harry groaned. “Why do you care so much, Malfoy? I don’t think I’ve ever seen you care about anything more in your life!” 

Draco grimaced and rubbed his arm where the tattoo now was. “Teddy isn’t some homework assignment! He isn’t some mission! He’s a living, breathing kid and he’s impressionable! It’s up to  _ us! We  _ are the ones who make this kid! It’s us who make him who he is! We get to make him good or bad .We get to make him smart, or lesser so. We get to make him have good values or bad values. Potter, we’re creating a little person! Do you realize how insane that is? And I will do  _ anything  _ to make sure we make him right. I don’t want him to have to feel pressured into being something he’s not. I don’t want him to be rude and unlovable. I want him to know what’s right and what’s wrong!” 

“So you want him to be the opposite of you?” Harry asked, arms folded. 

“Yes!” Draco said with pleading eyes. “Potter, do you ever wonder what would have happened to me if I hadn’t been raised to hate.” 

“Believe it or not, Malfoy, I was raised to hate, too,” Harry grumbled. 

Draco rolled his eyes. “Potter, it’s different. I loved my parents. I was so spoiled. I thought hating people was what was good because my parents hated everyone and I looked up to them. Your relatives might have been filled with hate, but you hated them back. They were cruel to you, so you knew it was wrong!” 

“Potter! Malfoy!” A deep voice barked. A league of 10  men were marching toward them in long, flowing brown auror’s robes. 

“Excellent. Let’s go,” Draco said, not breaking his eye contact with Harry as he stepped into the flames. 

\--

“Is this really necessary?” Patric Jameson asked as his robes got snagged on another branch. 

“It won’t be if you keep yodeling off the side of the mountain and letting them know our position, Jameson,” Malfoy snarled. They reached where the man-made path off of the side of the trail started. “You all stay here. Potter and I will go forward and make sure no one is in the cave,” he ordered.

There were murmurs of agreement as the team positioned themselves behind rocks and trees in an attempt to camouflage themselves. 

Draco followed Harry down the man-made path leading to the cave. The stepped inside the cave and were surrounded by darkness. Harry felt his arm brush against Draco’s gently, filling him with more confidence than usual. 

“ _ Lumos _ ,” Harry whispered, lighting the tip of his wand. He still couldn’t see much beyond the cave wall on one side and Draco’s arm on the other. His whisper echoed through the cave and amongst the nothingness. A chill shot through his spine. 

“Something’s wrong,” Draco mumbled. He got an anxious feeling in his chest that he hadn’t felt in three years. The dark mark on his arm tingled, but not as much as he would have if dark magic was present. It was strange, as if something dark had been there, but remained no longer. He sniffed the air. It didn’t smell thickly of bird poo, like the owlery and the home of Mr. Burren. The scent was there, but it was faint. Vacant. Stale, even. The birds had been there, but not recently. 

Harry took a step forward. Draco grabbed his arm and yanked him back. “Wrong. Something’s wrong,” he said again. He felt Harry’s pulse beat into the palm of his hand. “Potter, this is a t-”

He didn’t get to finish his sentence before both men sank through the floor of the cave and were transported into an even darker room, about the size of a porta-potty. They were press shoulder-to-shoulder, gasping for breath in the tight space. 

“ _ Lumos maxima! _ ” Draco shouted. The small room glowed, but the spell didn’t help much. It looked just the same in the light as it had in the dark. It was a small room with black walls and no windows or doors. The only peculiar thing was the garnish hanging from the ceiling of the room. It was thick and seaweed-like, with bends and waves in it. It was a deep navy blue, the most colorful thing in the room aside from Draco’s glowing cheeks. 

“What? How? Why?  _ What? _ ” Harry grumbled, wriggling around. 

“Don’t strain yourself too much, don’t want you to hurt that pretty little head of yours,” Draco muttered bitterly. “Merlin’s beard, Potter, could you sit still?” He snapped as Harry treaded on him in a million places he didn’t want him to tread. 

Harry let out a sound resembling a dog’s bark. “No! I can taste your breath! I’ve never wanted to be this close to you.”

“You’re lying to yourself. I’m a pleasure,” Malfoy said slyly. “And it’s always been my dream to have your stomach so close to my-  _ stop wiggling, Potter, or we are both going to suffocate! _ ” He snapped. The first part of the sentence was sarcastic, before it quickly turned disgusted. Harry froze uncomfortably with one leg suspended against one wall, one shoulder against another, and the other shoulder pinned against Malfoy’s chest. “What do you think those- those  _ weeds _ are?” Malfoy asked, using his free wanded hand to point to the ceiling. The other arm was wedged in a corner and was starting to lose feeling. 

“Why don’t you eat one and find out?” Harry grumbled. He was too stuck to be able to see them. 

Malfoy scowled. “While we’re at it, why don’t you shove one up you arse? Can’t be much different than  _ this  _ hellhole! It’s be like it’s natural habitat!” 

“Do you really want to go there, Malfoy?” 

“No, but I do want to go out of here! Whatever these things are, I promise you they’re our way out. Somehow or another,” he said and bit his lip as he thought. “Don’t move. I’m going to try and grab one.” He tried to pull his second arm free, only punching Harry in the fact twice in the process. He reached up and just barely managed to grasp the tip of the longest plant. He gave it a large yank and the plant turns bright yellow, but didn’t budge. 

“Excellent! Magic color-changing land-seaweed,” Harry spat. “We’re certainly in luck!” 

“Your sass is the last thing I need right now, Potter,” Malfoy grumbled. 

Both men observed the hanging seaweed once more. Harry gave it another tug. This time, the navy blue weed turned rose colored instead of yellow, but it didn’t help them much. 

“Do you think we can blast our way out of this thing?” Harry asked. 

Draco scoffed. “Potter, this thing is magically enforced. I can feel it. Even if it wasn’t we’re probably surrounded by several miles of dirt and rock on all sides. We  _ did  _ sink through the ground, if I recall correctly.” 

“We did!” Harry shouted. “I’ve got an idea. What if we grab onto the weeds and use them to pull ourselves back up through the ground?” 

“That’s ridiculous, Potter. It’s got to have something to do with magic.” 

“Don’t you see? That’s what Cupperton wants us to think. No muggle hikers are just going to stumble upon this mountain, only wizards can see it. That’s why Cupperton and any other Death Eater would chose this place- it’s protected from any muggle who would happen to just stumble upon it. He’d want you to think the wizard way out, when really, the answer is the simplest thing,” Harry explained. 

Malfoy thought for a moment and snarled. “I bloody hate you, Potter.” 

Harry smirked. “Then why are you holding my hand?” 

Draco squeezed his hand that wasn’t holding his wand and realized that he was, in fact, holding tightly onto Potter. He retreated and left go, wiping his palm on his robes as if Potter had come down with some nasty case of the cooties. His hand tingled, but it was different than the way his dark mark tingled. He was suddenly very aware that Harry’s face was just a few inches from his, and that all he could smell was his minty breath. “I didn’t- I wasn’t- just climb the damn weed, Potter!” 

Harry grinned again and wrapped his hand in the thick weed. Once again, it turned bright red. “Hey! That’s the color of your face right now!” He said, pointing to it with his other hand. 

“You will never see your son again, Potter.” 

“Alright, alright. I’m climbing,” he muttered, looping the other hand through and hanging from the weeds. He was a bit disappointed that his robes were too loose for Malfoy to see his swelling biceps. To see how much stronger Harry was than him, of course.  With much difficulty, he shimmied up the weeds, only kicking Malfoy in the face several times. 

“See if you can get your feet through,” Draco ordered. 

Harry pulled his legs up to his waist and tried to kick through the ceiling of the room. A few pebbles and chunks of dirt fell out. 

Draco coughed and spat out the debris. “Potter!” He grumbled. 

“Try to keep your mouth closed next time. I know it’s hard when you’re gaping at me, but-” 

“ _ POTTER! _ ” 

Harry let himself laugh one more time before he kicked again. His arms were getting extremely tired and throbbed like they never had before. He threw the force he could manage into the kick, and more dirt and rocks rained down. He could see a small hole into the real world. “There’s a hole!” He announced. He kicked again. This time, several weeds fell onto Draco’s shoulders like a high fashion scarf. His arms were giving out. He could feel his muscles twitching under the pressure. He gave two more kicks and decided the hole was large enough to fit his body through. “Help hoist me through,” he said. 

Draco grumbled something about ‘won’t like it’ as he grabbed Harry’s waist and pushed it through the ceiling. 

Fresh air flooded Harry’s face as he surfaced, bringing so much relief that he had never felt so content. He turned onto his stomach and pulled Malfoy through the hole, making sure to let go of his hands once he was up. 

“Freedom,” Harry sighed. 

“I don’t think I’ve ever been so happy to smell stale bird dung,” Malfoy muttered, getting off the ground and brushing the dirt off of his robes. 

“I’m always happy to be far away from you,” Harry said. He sat on the ground for another moment. Draco reached down to help him up.“What do you think this means?” Harry asked. 

Draco shrugged. “Cupperton must have heard us yesterday, because this cave looks like it hasn’t been used in the past day or so. I’m not surprised, you’re not exactly the most graceful mountain climber. But I think this place could still provide us with some clues.” 

Harry grinned again. “Not the trap. The fact that you’re holding my hand again,” he said, looking down at their connected arms. Draco’s hand sent warmth through Harry’s palm, up his arm, across his shoulders, and into his body. He didn’t hate it. He didn’t hate it. Why? He didn’t let go. Why? 

A moment later, Draco hadn’t let go, either. “Teddy,” he said. “It has to be for Teddy.” There was no other explanation. He’d spent so many years hating Potter. Surely Teddy had opened up a soft spot or something. Harry was the man Draco was raising a child with, after all. It had to have something to do with that. 

“Yeah. Teddy,” Harry said, somewhat softly. 

Draco was the first to let go. He didn’t know what to do with his arms. He folded them across his chest and looked around. “I suspect now we should look over this place for any clues. I suppose we’ll have to suspend our beach trip with Teddy until tomorrow.” 

“I suppose so. Hey, do you want to stay for dinner on Thursday when you drop Teddy off? We’re making personal pizzas,” Harry said, moving slowly to the other side of the cave. 

“Astoria is visiting someone,” Malfoy muttered. She didn’t like being away from her girlfriend, whom she couldn’t see while Teddy was around. Draco hated lying to him, but they needed a whole family. There was no other way. How could he explain that to a child, anyway? 

“Ginny’s going out with a friend. It will just be us and Teddy,” Harry said. 

Draco shrugged. “Okay.” 

“Alright.”

They were silent. 

“I can’t stand the scent of stale bird dung,” Draco finally said. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello all!   
> I'm back from Florida and it was lovely, but I didn't bring my laptop which is why this chapter is kind of random. I'm also sick AGAIN and my brain is too foggy for me to study, even though I totally need to.   
> This chapter was fairly mushy, so I hope that makes up for my absence!  
> I don't have this book planned out really, so I'm just writing plot as I go and I'm not really sure how long I should make it. I feel like the Cupperton case needs to be deeper and Draco and Harry's relationship needs to be less spastic so I'll be working on those things. I'm also avoiding writing Teddy because he's like 3 and I don't know how 3-year-olds talk.   
> .  
> Thank you SO MUCH for all of the love! You've been gracing the comments with your beautiful souls and I'm soooo grateful! You guys are too sweet! Thank you SO SO SO SO MUCH! You fill me with so much motivation and confidence. Never stop. It's so incredibly inspiring to know you are out there and you're actually reading this. I can't thank you enough.   
> Thanks for reading! I love you guys!   
> Lily


	12. Chapter Twelve: Endless Beach Day

“Astoria, Teddy, I’m home!” Draco called, stepping into his penthouse only extremely exhausted. His good robes were torn and muddied at the bottom and smelled faintly of Potter. A comforting smell Draco was sure he’d never get used to. “Teddy?” He called again when no one answered. “Astoria?” 

“Draco, dear, we’re up here!” Astoria’s sweet voice beaconed from up the spiraling staircase. Draco set his briefcase next to the elevator and made his way up the stairs. He longed for a different life. I life in which he and Astoria could actually be in love and have Teddy as their child. He couldn’t help but feel this was all wrong. He wasn’t supposed to be going into a romanceless marriage and have a child who didn’t belong to him. He wasn’t supposed to be an ashamed ex-death eater working for the Ministry. He was supposed to be something more, but also something less. He was supposed to be in a place of power, but unhappily. How had his life gotten this way? 

“Da-da!” Teddy cried, leaping into Draco’s arms once he had reached the top of the stairs. 

He kissed the top of the child’s fluffy blue head. “Hey, baby boy. How was your day? What did you do?” He asked, setting him softly back down on the ground. The boy was already distracted again by some crayons, and Draco’s questions went unanswered. It didn’t matter, though. Draco’s mood was significantly improved simply by seeing the boy. 

Astoria got off of her knees in the midst of a stuffed animal war and came over to greet Draco. “We joined a playgroup,” she announced. “A wizarding playgroup, of course. A recommendation from your mother.” 

“How was it?” Draco asked. 

His fiance made a face as she kissed his cheek. “Very… straight,” she said softly in his ear. “Such nice ladies. Teddy got along with everyone, of course. We were there for nearly four hours! He was playing with such a nice girl, Sam. She’s going to be in Ravenclaw, for sure. You should’ve seen her block towers, Draco. Merlin’s beard, they must’ve been up to my hip at least.” 

Draco laughed. “Wonderful!” 

“How was work?” She asked, her eyes full of concern. He had told her a bit more about the case than he was legally allowed to. 

“A bust. It was a trap,” he explained. He gave her a look that said he’d explain once Teddy was in bed. The child didn’t really need to hear about his fathers getting trapped together. “How many times did you use the potty today, Teddy bear?” He asked, squatting and picking up a stuffed bear.   
“Two times!” He cried. 

Draco gasped. “ _ Two times?  _ But- that’s two more times than yesterday!” Teddy collapsed into a fit of giggles. 

“Oh, yes,” Astoria said. “And the second time, he didn’t even fall in the toilet! He’s a fast learner, this little one,” she announced, 

“I am so proud of you, little bear!” Draco said, scooping him up and kissing him all over his head. “You’re going to be using the potty like a big boy anytime now! And as soon as you can use the potty, you can go to preschool!” He pretended not to notice the relief in Astoria’s eyes. He didn’t blame her for being tired, she was young and taking care of a kid took a lot of work. But Draco would give anything to spend every waking hour with this little kid. 

Teddy laughed some more and finally returned to the ground. “When will we see Da-da?” He asked. 

Draco, still smiling, put his hands on his hips. “I’m right here, little bear.” 

Teddy laughed some more and spun like a top. “No! Uncle Harry Da-da!” He explained, falling from getting dizzy. 

“We’ll see him tomorrow, alright? Do you want to go to the beach with Da-da?” Draco asked. He only felt slightly ridiculous referring to Harry as ‘Da-da’. 

“Draco, have you ever been to a beach?” Astoria asked. 

He chuckled. “Not that I can remember. I’m sure I’ve been at some point, right?” He asked. “It doesn’t matter. It’s going to be hot, and we couldn’t think of anything better to do for our family day. And we had to pick a public place so we’re not tempted to talk about work.” 

“I suppose,” Astoria said. “Well, Draco, I don’t know about you, but Teddy and I are hungry bears!” 

“Grrrrr!” Teddy said menacingly. 

Astoria laughed. “Yes, so, would you mind making us some dinner?” She asked. 

Draco looked past her at the boy. “I would love to,” he said. 

\--

“Are you sure you’ve got everything?” Astoria asking, lurking in the doorway of the elevator. 

“Yes,” Draco said, double checking the diaper bag. “Have fun today,” he said with a wink. Her girlfriend would be coming to the house. He had been warned to call if he was coming back before three. Astoria giggled and waved as the elevator doors closed. 

“Beach, beach, beaaacccchhhhh!” Teddy sang, toying with his snake. 

“That’s right,” Draco said, tapping his foot. He was supposed to meet Harry outside the building so they could apparate together, seeing as Draco had never been to a beach before and wasn’t prepared to end up in Aruba. 

Harry was waiting impatiently outside when Draco and Teddy had gotten out. He was wearing a bathing suit with a tight-fitting t-shirt over it that hugged him in way his lose auror’s robes never would. Draco was suddenly scalding hot in the shade of the building. “There you are!” Harry said, lifting Teddy up and hugging him. The poor kid got hugged and thrown about so often, you’d think he was a teddy bear or something. “You’re three and a half minutes late!” He said, buckling Teddy back up in his stroller. 

Draco shrugged. “Astoria was keeping us up,” he said. “Shall we?” He asked. 

They wandered behind the building where there were no muggles and disapperated. 

When they appeared on a beach, Draco was breathless. It was easily the most beautiful thing he had ever seen. The sand was soft and white, like flour, and the sea was a deep green. Like a certain someone’s eyes. Or perhaps as green as a fresh pickled toad. The sky was a bright azul with no clouds and a magnificent sun that warmed Draco’s skin. There were several families camped out in the sand, but it was relatively empty. 

“Here we are,” Harry announced. “It’s the only wizard beach in the country. Hermione took Ron, Ginny, and I here once. She heard about it in the Daily Prophet, I suppose. Nice, isn’t it?” 

“Lovely,” Draco muttered, nearly dropping the diaper bag. 

Harry began to walk through the sand with Teddy’s stroller, leaving Draco to follow. He was finding it very difficult to walk through the sand, his feet kept sinking through. Harry, however, seemed to be having a significantly easier time. “C’mon, Malfoy,”  he said, grinning. 

“Bloody Potter, you think you’re so cool for being able to walk in the sand, huh?” Draco spat, but he was smiling, too. 

Harry laughed and took his hand, pulling him along. “We can set up here,” he said, stopping the stroller. He took his own diaper bag off of his shoulder (he didn’t trust Draco’s) and placed it in the sand, taking out a large stained blanket. “I brought three options of sunscreen, even though I don’t burn. I figured you probably do,” he said with a glance at Draco’s ghostly skin. 

“What’s that supposed to mean?” He snarled, taking Teddy out of the stroller. 

Harry laughed again and shook his head. “Come put on sunscreen before you get wet, Teddy bear,” he said, grabbing the toddler by the back of the shirt and dragging him to the blanket. “What do you think I should put on him?” He asked, admiring his collection of suntan lotions. 

“The strongest one you’ve got. We Malfoys have very fair skin,” Draco said prestigiously. He sat down on the blanket and crossed his legs. “What is it? Some kind of sun-repellent potion?” 

“Something like that,” Harry said, squirting some on his hands and then lathering the boy with it until his skin had greasy white streaks down it. “Here,” he tossed the bottle to Draco before tugging off his shirt. 

“Stripping, Potter, really?” Draco asked, his heart fluttering a bit as he watched Harry’s back appear from under the shirt. His skin was the color of Teddy’s chocolate milk that he had with every meal. Draco couldn’t help but notice his heavenly shoulder muscles. It was difficult to look away. 

“We’re at a beach, Malfoy. That’s what you do at a beach,” Harry grumbled. He watched Draco awkwardly tug off his own t-shirt, his pale skin gleaming in the sunlight. He reminded Harry a bit of those fictitious vampires he sometimes saw on the television. He wasn’t as built as Harry was, but Harry supposed that the stress of nearly being but into Azkaban wasn’t really good for building muscles. Both of them were decorated with memories of the war. Draco had several long pink scars raw across his chest, as well as the dark mark on his arm. Harry had one at the base of his neck from the locket horcrux, the one on his forehead, and Umbridge’s message on his hand. This wasn’t unusual these days. Anyone who was in the war was bound to have some permanent memories tattooed onto their skin. 

“What else are we supposed to do here?” Draco asked after he had finished with the sunscreen. 

Harry grinned as he watched Teddy roll in the warm sand. “We could build a sandcastle, we could go swimming, we could go for a walk. We’ve got the entire day to do whatever we’d like. I’m locked out of the apartment until 2,” he muttered. Ginny was having Luna over for the day.

“Swim! Swim, swim, swim!” Teddy sang, tugging on Harry’s hand. “C’mon Da, let’s swim!” 

Harry laughed and got up. “Okay, Teddy bear, okay! You coming, Malfoy?” He asked, picking Teddy up. 

Draco sighed and stood up. “I suppose so.” 

They walked up to the water and stuck their toes in. Harry had been expecting it to be freezing so early into the year, but it was oddly warm. The waves lapped his ankles and his toes were buried in the thick wet sand. 

“It’s been enchanted,” Draco chuckled. “My mother told me they used to come here a lot before I was born,” he said, looking at Harry. 

“I suppose that would make sense,” Harry muttered. 

“Swiiiiim!” Teddy shrieked. 

Harry smiled and let him into the water. “Careful,” he warned, still holding onto the toddler as he leaped into the water. 

“Potter, what are you doing? He’s going to drown!” Draco shouted, grabbing Harry’s arm. 

“Toddlers are buoyant,” Harry laughed as Teddy threw himself into a wave and then floated back until Harry’s ankles caught him. “Let’s go a little deeper, Teddy bear. We’ll teach you how to swim,” he said, scooping the soggy child up.  “You  _ do  _ know how to swim, right, Malfoy?” He asked. 

Draco smiled slyly. “The Slytherin common room was right next to the lake. They taught us all to swim incase there was ever a flood.” 

“Really?” 

“Sure! You didn’t have flood drills in Gryffindor?” He asked, wading further into the water. “I’m kidding,” he said, seeing the horrified look on Harry’s face. “Some of my friends taught me in first year. We went to the great lake and practiced for a little bit when we didn’t have class. It was bloody freezing and terrifying, but it was fun,” he said, shrugging. 

Harry nodded. “After I ate that gillyweed in fourth year, I’ve always kind of known how,” he said with a chuckle. They walked until Harry was waist deep. Draco was a bit taller, so it just barely it the bottom of his hips. Harry balanced Teddy on his knee, both of his hands around the child’s torso. 

“ _ Accio floaties _ !” Draco called. A little lifevest floated out of his diaper bag and into the water beside him. “Not that I don’t trust you, Potter, but I don’t,” he said, buckling it on Teddy. 

“Look, Da, I’m swimming!” Teddy cried, floating in the water and flapping his arms around. 

“You sure are, little bear!” Draco said, leaning out of the way to avoid Teddy’s splashing. 

“Let’s play a game,” Harry said. “I”m going to stand right here, Dad will stand right there, and you have to swim from me to him, got it?” He asked, still bouncing Teddy on his knee. 

“Yeah!” Teddy giggled. 

“Got it?” Harry asked Draco. 

Draco was still stuck on the fact that Harry had referred to him as ‘Dad’. The word still rung in his ears. It might not have meant much to Harry, but to Draco, it meant that Harry had finally accepted that they were Teddy’s fathers and they had to act like it. “Right. Yes. Got it,” Draco said, suddenly snapping out of it. “Catch the baby. Got it,” he said. 

Harry smiled and nodded. “Okay, Teddy, swim to Dad!” He said. 

Teddy rolled onto his stomach in moved his arms in some dramatic form of a doggy paddle. It wasn’t very effective, so Draco stepped closer until he was able to catch Teddy. “I’ve got you!” He said, throwing him into the air. “Try making your hands like this, you’ll go faster,” he said softly. He cupped his hand and held it next to Teddy’s, who tried to mimic it. “Now go to Daddy,” he said, releasing him. 

They played this game for ages, until it seemed like Teddy was finally getting the hang of it. Unfortunately, at that point, Harry and Draco were exhausted from standing in the sun for so long and Draco couldn’t get over the feeling that something was swimming up his leg. 

“No more swimming,” Harry said desperately. He put Teddy on his hip. “Let’s go dry off.” 

“Good idea,” Draco muttered, moving through the water next to him. 

“I wanna swim!” Teddy whined. 

“Not now, baby bear. It’s time to dry off. Then we can build a sandcastle, okay?” Draco asked. He leaned over and kissed the toddler's forehead. 

Harry lightly touched Draco’s shoulder. “Looks like you’ve got a sunburn,” he said. 

Draco sighed. “Curse you and your perfect sun resistant skin,” he said, smiling at Harry, who winked. 

They toweled off, taking only as much time as Teddy allowed before demanding they make a sandcastle. He, of course, had rolled in the stand as a form of toddler spirit. 

The three of them spent the entire day making sandcastles, burying each other in the sand, and taking a long walk to the end of the beach. Harry and Draco took turns stealing long stares at each other. Draco took every excuse he could to squeeze Harry’s arm. Harry grabbed Draco’s hand an odd about of times. They bumped hips accidentally when they walked. Harry’s had grazed Draco’s wrist. They stood very close every time they traded Teddy. 

Both of them pretended it wasn’t happening. 

Harry pretended that Draco’s torso wasn’t the only thing he wanted to look at for the rest of his life. He pretended he didn’t want to watch Draco talk to Teddy on repeat. He pretended he didn’t care when Draco referred to him as ‘Dad’ when speaking to Teddy. Or that his heart thudded like horseshoes on hard ground every time Draco made eye contact with him. Or that he flexed a little every time Draco grabbed his arm. 

Draco simply pretended that he wasn’t slowly falling in love with Harry Potter, but Merlin’s beard was it painful. Harry’s entire being demanded attention. His eyes were too obnoxiously green not to stare at. His hair was too terribly unkempt not to mess with. His chest and back were too tauntingly existent not to touch. Maybe Astoria was right. But he did not want her to be. Harry had his life together. He had a fiance, his school sweetheart. He had a job of three years where he was respected. He had an apartment that he didn’t use blackmail to get. He didn’t need Draco. He was the cookie on the top shelf that Draco could never reach. 

“I don’t want this day to end,” Harry said suddenly. It was quiet, as if he was giving Draco the option to pretend he hadn’t heard it if he didn’t want to .  He fell onto the blanket, resting his head in his hands. 

“Me neither,” Draco said, laying down next to him. “Do you think he’s finally asleep?” He asked softly. 

Harry glanced at the stroller. The small child’s head had rolled to the side and his eyes were peacefully closed. “He’s out. I love him every hour of every day, but I love him the most the hours he’s asleep,” he said. 

Draco laughed. “The very, very few hours he’s asleep.” 

“Did he wake you up last night?” 

“I didn’t sleep.” 

“Why not?” 

He laughed again. “Is Potter worried about my well-being?” He teased. 

“Yes,” Harry said with a serious tone. 

Draco sighed. “I was just worried. Worried we won’t ever potty train him. Worried he’d fall out of bed and I wouldn’t hear him crying. Worried he was dehydrated or constipated or kidnapped,” he said. 

“You can’t do everything, Draco. It’s okay to be worried, but it’s okay not to be there for him every second of every day,” Harry said. “I’m not going to lie, these past few days when I don’t come home to him have been the worst of my life, but we’ve got to let go. Ginny wants me to join a club for divorced mums.” 

“Divorced mums?” Draco asked. 

“Yeah, like mums who only have partial custody over their children.”

Draco nodded. “Potter, can we get one thing straight?” 

“What?” 

He smiled. “ _ I’m _ Dad.  _ You’re _ Daddy.” 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Can you tell I'm trying desperately not to let them call each other Daddy? I feel like it needs to happen though. Draco is totally going to call Harry Daddy from now on. I hope you're all prepared.   
>  Sorry this was so short, but I hope it was mushy enough. I've got a big plot thing I want to do but I'm not sure when I want to do it. I think it's going to be soon. So look out for that!  
> I've got school again this week so I probably wont post again until next weekend, but I do have a half day on Wednesday, so I might write then.   
> Thank you so much for reading! Don't forget to comment!  
> Love you!  
> Lily


	13. Chapter Thirteen: I've Got to Tell You Something

Astoria was tense. Her shoulders climbed towards her ears and she couldn’t seem to push them down. As she waited for Draco on the couch, thoughts of dread filled her head.  _ This isn’t the life for me. I’m not supposed to be living this way.  _ Her voice echoed like screams between her ears. Her heart thudded. She couldn’t seem to sit still. Hands folded on her knee. Too formal. Criss-cross. Too uncomfortable. She touched her hair. What should she do with her arms? 

Finally, Draco came in with two glasses of pixie wine in his hands. “Teddy’s finally asleep,” he said, allowing himself to recline into the couch. 

“I’ve got to tell you something,” they said at the same time. Draco chuckled. Astoria’s eyes began to water. 

“You go first,” Draco said. 

Astoria nodded and bit her lip. “I can’t do this anymore, Draco. I’m too young. I don’t want a kid. I don’t want a husband. I want a life!” She said. 

“Astoria, tons of witches get married and have kids right out of Hogwarts,” Draco said. He sipped his wine and made a face. Pixie wine wasn’t his favorite. He didn’t like to think about how they made it, but it was the only kind he could get. 

She avoided making eye contact. “I don’t want to be a witch anymore,” she said quietly. “I don’t want to live in this world anymore! I want to live in the muggle world, Draco! I  _ love  _ car rides. They’re so soothing, and when you’re driving, there’s nothing else you could be doing. Most wizards think it’s a waste of time but it’s so nice to have a little break in your day. And doing chores manually! Ria and I do them together and it’s so nice just to have the time to talk to her. And sure, I’ll always use my magic. It makes her laugh. And there are some days where I’m too lazy not to. But I want to be part of Ria’s world now,” she said. She took a gulp of her drink. “Ugh! And I  _ loathe  _ pixie wine! Why can’t we just have normal wine? Just grape wine?” She whined.

Draco laughed and took her glass, placing it on the coffee table. “You’re not supposed to like pixie wine,” he said. “At least, I don’t  _ think  _ you are… but it doesn’t matter. Astoria, if you don’t want to be part of this world anymore, I’m not going to force you to,” he said. 

“You aren’t?” She asked. 

“No! I’ll…  I’ll figure something out. Tell your family you’re gay. Move in with your girlfriend. You’re miserable here,” he said. “You’ve become one of my closest friends. I’m not going to make you suffer.” 

She threw her arms around him. “It means  _ so much _ to hear you say that, Draco. You have no idea,” she said softly. “I’ll nanny Teddy for you. Even on Harry’s weeks. I won’t ask for a lot of money, it’s kind of worthless in the muggle world. They have a different currency,” she rambled. “You can still live here, of course.” 

“Astoria, I’d never ask that of you,” Draco said. “I’ll find somewhere for Teddy and I to stay. You have this apartment. It’s not really my style.” 

She laughed. “Thank you. For everything. Really. Now, what did you want to talk about? How was the beach.” 

Draco stared out the window behind her and the bustling city lights. “I think I’m in love with bloody Harry Potter,” he spat. 

\--

“How was the beach?” Ginny asked as Harry got home. 

“Nice,” Harry said. He was going to keep it at that. He wasn’t going to mention the fact that Draco Malfoy and his bare torso were still plastered into his mind with a sticking spell that wouldn’t come off. “How was your day with Luna?” He asked. 

Ginny smiled. “Lovely,” she said. “Listen, Harry, we have a lot to talk about.” 

“We do?” Harry asked. 

“Yes. We do,” Ginny said. “Are we friends?” She asked. 

“Of course,” Harry laid his hand over hers. “We’re best friends.” 

“Are we still in love?” 

Harry was silent. He looked out the window. He looked at the sink with the dirty dishes piling into it. He looked at Teddy’s new highchair. He looked at the toys scattered around on the floor than he hadn’t gotten around to cleaning up yet. He looked at his fiance. Her red hair. Her hazel eyes. His heart used to pound when he looked at that face. “No,” he said. 

She smiled. “No. I didn’t think so,” she said. “Harry, I’ve got to tell you something.” 

“You have my undivided attention.”

“Well, first, I think we should call off the wedding,” she said. “Harry, I don’t think I’m the settling type. I need to go. I need to be out in the world, you know? So I’m… I’m leaving. I’m going to travel to all the known wizarding cities and write about them. I’m going to write a book, Harry. And- and Luna’s coming with me,” she announced. 

Harry beamed. “Excellent! That sounds great, Ginny!” 

Her eyes looked reassured. “Thanks, Harry. Second, I know about Draco and Astoria.” 

“What about them?” Harry asked. 

“They aren’t really together. Draco’s Astoria’s cover because she’s dating a muggle girl and he’s… well I think he’s still in love with you, to be honest,” Ginny muttered. Harry’s eyes swelled to the size of saucers. “I suppose you don’t know what I’m talking about, then?” 

“How do you know about this, Ginny?” Harry asked. 

She shrugged. “I’m a journalist. I know everything. But I’m not going to write about it, no matter how much they’d pay me for it. It’s not my business.” 

“So… they’ve never been dating? This entire time?” Harry asked. 

“Nah. They’re just friends,” Ginny said. “But it doesn’t matter! There’s one more thing we have to talk about. I told you that I thought Draco was in love with you. Well… I also think the feeling is mutual.” 

“What are you saying?” Harry asked. He suddenly started to get a bit angry. 

She folded her arms. “Oh, come on. What happened at the beach today?” 

“Nothing! We played with Teddy!” Harry said defensively. 

Ginny nodded. “Right. But when Teddy was napping. C’mon Harry. You’ve always been obsessed with him. Don’t try to tell me you’ve never felt anything for him.” 

“Ginny, I’m not gay!” 

“You don’t have to be gay to be attracted to guys!” She shouted. “I’m just saying you should give it some thought, that’s all. I see the way you look at him. All you talk about is working with him. You’re not even legally allowed to tell me about work, Harry! You’re supposed to eat dinner with him or something. No one said you had to spend the entire day at the beach with him! Tell me the truth, Harry! Tell yourself the truth!” 

Harry crossed his arms. “You’re being ridiculous!” 

“Oh, am I? Why do you blush every time I say his name? Why do you seem more excited to see him than you are to see Teddy? Why did you seem so excited when I told you he and Astoria weren’t actually engaged? You’re lying to yourself!” Ginny shouted.

He thought for a moment. He couldn’t love Malfoy. He was too busy hating him. And the way his eyes lit up when he scowled. And when he folded his arms and his hip did the sticking-out thing. And everything about his flower tattoo. Merlin’s beard, that stupid flower tattoo. And they way Draco’s fingers danced across it every time he caught Harry staring. Out of hatred. 

“Harry Potter! Earth to Harry Potter!” Ginny sang, snapping her fingers. 

“Sorry. Zoned out,” Harry muttered. 

“Thinking about what?” Ginny asked, folding her arms. 

Harry bit his lip. “Malfoy,” he said quietly. 

Ginny nodded. “Yeah. Yeah. I’m telling you this as your friend and temporary fiancee. If you don’t stop lying to yourself, you’re just going to hurt yourself and you’re going to hurt him. And Harry, I’ve got to tell you something.  _ No one is going to care if you’re in love with Draco Malfoy.  _ I’m a journalist. I know everything. It will be big news for a few weeks, but after that, no one will give two flying shits. It will make Teddy’s life better. Think about it. I’m not saying you have to propose to him the second you get to work tomorrow, but just think about it.”

Harry’s head hit the counter. “I don’t want to!” He whined. 

“Oh, Harry. I’ve already one this argument,” she said in a voice that resembled a lullaby. “I’m leaving for my trip in four days. I won’t be back for several months. Maybe, just maybe, you should invite Malfoy over once or twice?” She suggested. “Want some tea?” 

“Always.” 

\--

The next morning was painful. Harry didn’t want to get out of bed. He didn’t want to face Malfoy. He didn’t want to face his feelings. But, he got up. He put on the cleanest robes he could find, stepping over his bathing suit from yesterday. And, like every other day, he walked to the Ministry and arrived at level three, in the dinky aurors office. 

For the first time, he was there earlier than Draco was, so he sat at his desk and doodled on his whiteboard for a bit. 

“Potter! What do you think you’re doing?” Draco hissed. 

Harry finished his illustration of the Quidditch match and put down the marker. “Decorating,” he said, sounding very proud of himself. “Now that you’ve decided to show up, I suppose we can get to work,” he said.

“You suppose,” Draco spat, taking out his notebook. 

“Rough morning?” Harry asked. Draco didn’t answer. “Ginny’s moving out next week. She’s going on some big trip so she can write a book. We’re telling her parents that we’re calling off the wedding tonight, so if I’m not in work tomorrow, it’s because they’ve killed me.” 

“You’re calling off the wedding?” Draco asked, freezing. 

Harry shrugged. “Yeah. We just weren’t feeling it. How about you?” 

Draco sighed. “Same for us, I suppose. We went into it too quickly. I don’t know what I’m going to do, though. Astoria said she’d nanny Teddy for a cheap price, but I don’t know where I’m going to live. The apartment is her’s after all.” He said. 

Harry’s eyes widened. “I suppose you could stay with me once Ginny moves out. It’d be easier for Teddy,” he said. He couldn’t believe what he was saying. Words were coming out of his mouth, but they didn’t belong to him. 

“Yeah,” Draco muttered. “For Teddy.” 

Both men were silent for a moment. Thinking. What would life be like under the same roof? Draco’s mind wandered places he had never let it wander before. With Harry in the same house, he could make him fall in love with him. Teddy would have a complete family, the one he deserved and needed. Harry was staring at Draco’s tattoo again. 

“I- I guess I will,” Draco finally said. 

“Yeah,” Harry said. 

“Potter! Malfoy! Get to work!” Glacia barked, slapping the wall of the cubicle with her unusually large palm. What a buzz kill. 

\--

They dove further into the Cupperton case than they ever had before. Why had he attempted to capture them? Where was he now? Nothing was making sense. And now, Rosmerta and Burren were on the line. It wasn’t just about a missing Death Eater with a weird tattoo anymore. And they were getting anywhere. Anything Harry thought he was getting close to figure something out, he looked at Draco and forgot his train of thought. Draco couldn’t get anything done with Harry’s arm bumping into his the way it was. 

“More! There’s got to be more clues!” Harry cried, slamming his fist on the desk. 

“This is it, Potter! I’ve told you a million times!” Draco shouted, tossing the file at Harry, who thumbed through it for the thousandth time. “We’ve got nothing. This is it. We’ve got the owls, we’ve got the cave, and we’ve got the tattoos. That’s it. Nothing else. Nada,” he spat. 

“I need some air,” Harry grumbled. He checked his watch. “Let’s go get some lunch,” he suggested. 

“Fine,” Draco muttered. 

They wandered out of the Ministry and onto the streets of London. Harry watched the dark grey clouds rolling in from above to avoid the stares of the people who had never seen two men in brown robes walking down the road before. His hands were stuck in his pockets as his eyes stuck to the sky. He felt Draco’s shoulder bump into his absent mindedly. Suddenly, something large and brown covered the cloud he was looking at. 

“Wha- Malfoy! Do you see that?” Harry shouted pointed to the bird. 

Both men froze, causing people walking behind them to shout angrily. “Hawk owl!” Draco shouted. “Come on, we’ve got to catch up to it!” He said. He grabbed Harry’s hand and pulled him through the crowd. 

They wove through seas of people, chasing the bird. It soared too high above and it was moving too fast, they couldn’t keep up with it in these crowds. 

“In here,” Harry said, pulling Draco into an alleyway where they wouldn’t be seen. “ _ Accio hawk owl _ ,” he shouted, yanking his wand out. The large bird was drawn to him like a magnet. He grasped it by it’s two talons. “ _ Muffalo! _ ” He shouted, to silence its uncomfortable squacks. 

“Look at it’s ankle. It’s got a letter,” Draco said, seizing the bird’s foot. He untied the parchment. “And it’s tagged,” he announced, pointing to the purple band around its ankle. 

“What’s it say?” Harry asked. “Quick, it’s getting hostile!” He gasped as the bird pecked at his wrist. 

“‘Burren’s Owlery’!” Draco exclaimed. “Potter! This is one of our birds! What do we do with it?” He asked. 

Harry gasped in pain as it’s bill slit his hand. “Gah! Knock it out!” He yelped. 

“ _ Stupefy! _ ” Draco said. The bird froze. It looked like one of the taxidermied birds you see in museums. “We should take this back to the Ministry so we can read the letter. Should we track the bird or should we give it back to the owlery?” He asked. 

“Both,” Harry muttered. He stuffed the bird into his robes. “Walk close to me so no one can see it,” he said. “We’ll track it and then tell it go to the owlery. I’m sure he doesn’t want to be stuck with Cupperton. I don’t imagine he’s one to treat his birds nicely.” 

“Says the man with an owl stuffed in his robes,” Draco muttered as they exited the alleyway. “So I guess this means we’re working for lunch break then. I’ve got some stale cheerios in my briefcase that we can split.  Just be careful, there might be a few boogers. Teddy’s, of course. I didn’t have time to transfer everything from my briefcase to the diaper bag.” 

Harry chuckled. “Disgusting,” he said. 

They walked back to the Ministry and into their office, where they put the hawk owl in a cage (which was difficult to find. The Ministry hadn’t used owls in decades) before it could become unstunned and try to eat Harry again. He washed his wound as best as he could, praying that birds couldn’t have rabies, before they opened the letter that had been bound to the bird’s foot. 

_ Mindoro Scops, _

_ Was almost caught. Two idiot aurors wandered right into our trap, but they escaped. Promise, they don’t know anything about your whereabouts. Be there soon with the prisoners. They’re being searched for, we need to be ready.  _

_ Hawk   _

“Well, I hardly think we’re idiots!” Draco shouted after they had finished reading. “But now, look what we’ve got. Their little note. Who is Mindoro Scops?” He asked, pointing at the name. 

Harry bit his lip. “Mindoro Scops. Mindoro Scops. Why does that sound familiar? Why do you think they signed the note ‘Hawk’? We know it’s Cupperton, why bother with code names? Also, they clearly didn’t think their owl would be interceded.”

“Mindoro Scops- Potter, you’re right. It is familiar!” Draco said. He pulled the bird manual they had gotten at Burren’s Owlery out of his bag. He flipped open to the second page. “They’re a type of owl! They’re only common to the Philippines, but they’re endangered everywhere else. You can’t buy them as wizarding owls, which would be why no one logged their disappearance.” 

“This means there are at  _ least  _ two groups of these Death Eater guys. And that means they know how to train owls not usually used by wizards. And that means we’re in trouble,” Harry wailed, letting his face fall into his hands. 

Draco nodded. He gave the hawk owl a handful of treats. “We’re going to have to follow this one and see where she was meant to go. We should put this letter back on her.” 

“Not this letter, a blank one. So they won’t think anything is wrong at first and it will give us time to get away,” Harry said. “How are we going to follow the owl? It’ll be difficult to run after her, it didn’t work so well the first time.” 

Draco grinned. “Harry, we’re wizards. We fly on broomsticks,” he announced. 

“Okay. Tomorrow let’s meet-”

“There’s no time tomorrow. We have to do it today,” Draco argued. “The sports department has a supply of brooms that they keep on hand. We’ll borrow two and  send this pretty owl on her way. We’ll follow her, but we’ll stay far enough that they won’t see us coming. When she lands, we’ll make sure we know the location.” 

Harry nodded. “Right. We’d better tell Glacia we won’t be back for a bit.” 

“No time. Let’s go!” Draco said. He grabbed the bird cage and ran out of the cubicle. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys!  
> Thank you SOOOOOOO much for your comments! They motivate me so unbelievably much. Sometimes I fall into this slump where I don't feel like I can do anything, but you guys really keep me going. You give me this feeling of purpose. Thank you so much for making me feel that way.   
> Would you guys like for me to do chapter summaries? I did a few, but I sort of stopped. Do you like them or nah? Let me know!   
> Thank you for reading! Thank you for commenting! Thank you for motivating me!  
> Love you!  
> Lily


	14. Chapter Fourteen: Take to the Skies

“Merlin,” Draco muttered, mounting the broom. “I haven’t ridden since school.” 

“Really?” Harry asked, sliding onto his own. He had the bird cage at his hip, the hawk owl squawking at him ruthlessly. The fake note was tied to her ankle, now all that was left to do was to let her free. “The Weasleys have family matches the first Saturday of every month. We play all morning and all afternoon and then Mrs. Weasley makes a huge feast for supper,” Harry rambled on. “I’ll take you and Teddy something.” 

“That’s a bloody stupid idea, don’t you think, Potter?” Malfoy snarled.

Harry blinked, disoriented. “What?” 

Draco sighed. “You can’t seem to understand classism, can’t you? The Weasleys and I can never make peace. We’re destined to hate each other for as long as we both shall live. Like a marriage of hatred. They’ll mock me the entire time, of course. And that’s assuming they let you live after you tell them you’re dumping their daughter.” 

“She’s dumping me. And the Weasleys aren’t who you think they are. They don’t  _ care  _ about blood. They care about their family. And they care about whether or not you’d do anything to protect it. They’re the most loyal people I’ve ever met. And they’re accepting. It took them a day to go from believing Sirius Black was a mass murdered who was hunting for me, to accepting him as my godfather. They want to meet you anyway. Because you’re Teddy’s other father and all,” Harry said, getting very defensive. His hands clutched the broom tightly. No one could talk badly about his family. 

“They do?” Malfoy muttered. 

“Yes!” Harry said. “You know, not everyone hates you because you were a Death Eater. Most people believe in second chances, Malfoy.”

His words echoed in Draco’s ears for a moment.  _ Most people believe in second chances, Malfoy.  _ “Whatever,” Draco said. “We’ve got to get this case over with. Let the bird go. Let’s fly,” he ordered. 

Harry undid the latch. The owl hopped out of the cage and landed on the top. “Take this to Mindoro Scops, got it? Don’t wait for us. When you’re done, go home to the owlery,” he said. The bird cooed and glanced at Draco. 

“You’d better do what he says,” Draco sadi. The bird didn’t move. Draco sighed and rolled up his sleeve, showing the bird the dark mark tattoo. It wasn’t like others she had seen, but it was good enough. His had pretty flowers. She liked his more than the other people’s. She cooed affectionately at him, bitterly at Harry, and then took off. “Here we go,” Draco said. 

They hit the skis, following the bird but staying back a little bit so they couldn’t be seen. Draco felt the cool air push through his robes. It fell nice to get out of the stuffy Ministry office. He felt as if he could finally breathe. He leaned into the wind. He had forgotten how much he loved flying. The people of London looked like ants below him, hurrying around and living their tiny individual lives. Everyone down there had a purpose. A family. A life. They were all the main characters to their own narrative, but to Draco, they were just details in a passing glance. The world was magical, even without the actual magic. He was in the clouds with Harry Potter. Life was strange. And Draco Malfoy was only beginning to learn how to love it. 

“Are you alright?” Harry asked. “You’re quiet.” 

“I don’t need to talk, Potter,” he said. 

“My name is Harry.” 

“I know, Daddy,” Draco said with a sly grin. 

Harry’s cheeks turned pink. “Don’t, Malfoy,” he spat. 

Draco grinned and continued to fly in silence. They had forever to talk. For now, Draco wanted Harry to be quiet. He wouldn’t catch him staring at him that way. And the way the wind messed up Harry’s hair, so Draco didn’t have to. And his hands around the broomstick. And his robes flowing in the wind. 

“Looks like we’re coming up on a mountain,” Harry announced. A tall, ominous black figure appeared through the clouds.  “Where do you think we are?” He asked as they got closer. He didn’t recognize it at all. 

“Not sure. Stay in the clouds,” Draco advised. His fingers and nose grew cold as they drifted higher. He could still see the owl, though he knew she couldn’t see them. It was a shame, really. He had grown a small bit attached to that bird. 

They lurked in the clouds for a while before the bird ducked down for a landing. Harry and Draco merely looked at eachother before racing downward. It was an unofficial race. Harry was determined to beat Malfoy. If he didn’t, it was six years of Quidditch down the drain. He tucked his legs as close to his body as possible for agility and squinted against the wind. He thought his hair was going to fly off. He silently touched down on the other side of the mountain, so they wouldn’t be seen. Draco touched down seconds later. 

“You’re such a child, Potter,” he sneered.  

“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Harry said, looking around. “What’s the plan now?” 

Draco shrugged. “We sneak around the other side to see if we can spot what’s going on. Look’s like we’re going to have to make our own path around,” he muttered. The only thing between them and the Death Eaters was a large amount of ice-covered rocks. Draco took one step forward and slipped, catching himself with his foot wedged between the ground and a boulder. “Careful, it’s icy,” he said softly, wrenching his foot out. 

Harry tried not to laugh. “Very graceful. I’ll give that a 8 out of 10- there’s always room for improvement. Now come on, Malfoy. Try not to slip.” 

“No shit, Merlin,” Draco muttered, walking behind Harry. He wished he had worn thicker robes. The air on this mountain was nothing like the air on the ground. It was much colder (ice… duh) and the bitter wind stung his exposed skin. It was like drinking cold water after sucking on a mint. Painfully cool, but refreshing. 

They stumbled their way over and around jagged black rocks covered in snow and invisible ice. Harry had torn his last set of robes and the cut on his hand from the violent owl had opened up again. He was trying not to let any of his blood spill where the Death Eaters could see it, but this proved to be difficult when they were nearly surrounded by bright white snow and not falling was a two-hand ordeal. “Gah!” He muttered as he feel and slit his wounded hand again on a sharp rock. 

“Alright, Potter?” Draco asked, creeping forward. 

“Fine,” Harry muttered, clutching his hand. 

Draco sighed. “No, let me see, you blundering idiot,” he said and took Harry’s hand in his. His thumb traced the wound across Harry’s palm. “Idiot,” he muttered again as he took his wand out. “This won’t be the best, but it will keep you from dying of blood loss,” he said.  He muttered a spell. Harry’s hand glowed for a moment, like it had when they made the unbreakable vow, and the wound sealed itself up. 

“How’d you know how to do that?” Harry asked. 

“That’s a story for another day,” Draco murmured. 

They walked/slipped onward. “I’m so tired,” Harry said. “I’m tired of hunting this asshole down. I’m tired of chasing him. I’m tired of climbing these bloody mountains, and I’m  _ so tired  _ of all of these smelly owls.” 

Draco chuckled. “Are you tired of me?” He asked, moving forward to walk next to him. 

“I’ll never get tired of you, Malfoy,” Harry said, surprising himself. They stared at eachother for an extended period of time. Green eyes looking into grey ones. Together, they made the sea. Cold, dark, yet gorgeous. People write poems about the sea and no one forgets them. People get married by the seaside. Magical creatures that have nothing to do with magic at all lay undiscovered in the depths of the sea. “I like looking at your stupid face too much,” he said. 

Draco threw his hands in the air. “Can’t let us have one moment, can you, Potter?” 

“Sorry, I just hate you so much. It’s hard to hold it back.”

“My hatred for you could fill every ocean in the galaxy.” 

“Your voice repulses me.” 

“Your eyes are so pretty, they make me want to vomit.” 

“Your  _ face  _ is so pretty, it makes me want to vomit!” 

Meanwhile, their progression around the mountain was slow. It winds and the cold weren’t on their side. It didn’t matter, though, because if they had been any closer, all of England would have heard them bickering. 

They decided it was time for them to be silent once they could peer around the corner of the mountain. The sharp shouts of owls pierced the air. They sang out because their home was not on the side of this mountain. They sang out because they were cold. They sang out because animals were not meant for evil. And Draco knew. He and Harry got closer and the screams got louder. Draco couldn’t stand to hear them. He wasn’t a vegetarian, he’d never had a pet, but he knew suffering when he heard it. Soon, they could hear muffled voices shouting against the cries of the wind and the songs of the owls’ suffering. It was snowing too much for him to see anything, but he could hear their voices carry easily over the open air of the mountain. 

“-wish these goddamn birds would shut the hell up!” One grumbled. There was a clang as the heel of a boot collided with the metal of a birdcage. 

“Doesn’t matter. What are we going to do about this letter?” Another asked. “What do you think it means?” 

“I don’t fucking know, Rick. Merlin- how did I get suckered into this?” The first one grumbled. “It’s too bloody cold. These birds are too bloody loud. The boss is lucky I don’t launch myself off the side of this bloody mountain.” 

“What’s going on over here?” A third voice entered. 

“None of your business, Rick,” the first grumbled. 

One of them groaned. “You’ve got to stop calling everyone Rick! No one here is called Rick! That’s Herbert! My name is Janice.  _ Janice! _ ” They shouted. 

“You two stop bickering,” the new voice (Herbert) spat. “What have you got to tell me?” 

Janice sighed again. “We got a Hawk Owl with a blank note tied to her foot. She took off and flew away before we could do anything. We assume it’s from the bossman, but we aren’t sure what it means.” 

“Listen, Rick,” said the stubborn first voice. “When can we get off this bloody mountain?” 

Herbert wasn’t pleased. “Second patrol comes in five minutes. I’m sure we’re safe to go. I guess I’ll send an owl to the boss in the morning. He’s expecting a status report in the meantime. How many recruits have we got this week?”

“Four,” Janice said. “We’ll have enough to start another team soon. Then one more after that and we’re ready to go.” 

“Whatever. I’m out,” Rick grumbled. There was a pop and he was gone. 

“See you tomorrow, Janice,” Herbert said. 

“Have a nice afternoon, Herb,” Janice replied. There were two pops and Harry and Draco were alone with the cries of the owls. 

“Come on, we’ve got to go,” Draco muttered. He grabbed Harry’s arm and tugged him forward. 

“No! We’ll be caught. They said they had five minutes until the next wave came!” Harry argued. 

Draco sighed. “That means I’ve got three minutes to release those owls,” he said, determined. “And I’m going, no matter what you say. Are you with me or not?” He grumbled. “You know what, I don’t care.” He sprinted through the snow to where the birdcages stood outside a frozen cave. 

“Malfoy, I’m coming!” Harry shouted. 

They started unlatching the cages and throwing the doors open. Sometimes two or three birds were jammed into one cage. All the same species, the small brown owl that looked slightly offended, no matter what you said to it. Draco wondered what made Cupperton chose these measly little creatures. 

“Go to Burrens’ Owlery!” He shouted to the birds as he released one. One looked him with its large green eyes. It had several black feathers on its head that reminded him of a certain man with messy black hair. “Except you. You come with me,” he told the owl. It squacked merrily and perched himself on Draco’s shoulder. 

“Malfoy! Now is not the time to collect pets!” Harry shouted, shooing several owls away. 

“For Teddy!” Draco shouted back. His fingers were freezing from the bitter cold. The tips were turning blue. He fumbled for the latch of the last cage. After seconds of failing, he finally unhooked it and released the birds. They flew out into the white sky like flower petals drifting into the wind. “We’ve got to run. Now. Now!” Draco yelled, pushing Harry across the snow. 

“Our footprints!” Harry said. 

“Doesn’t matter! We’ll be on our brooms before they even realize something’s wrong. Potter- move!” 

They ran. They ran until they had mounted their brooms and launched themselves into the sky. They flew through the pelting, freezing snow and through the clouds. Soaking wet and freezing, they drifted through the air, only Harry’s  _ point me  _ spell to guide them. The talons of Draco’s owl (Draco had named him Hairy Pooper in his head, but it was subject to change) digged into his shoulder, leaving several deep cuts. Neither Harry nor Draco said anything for a long time as they caught their breaths. 

“I’m soaking wet,” Draco sighed, exasperated. 

“I’m so wet, parts of my robes are freezing,” Harry said. 

“My fingers are frozen to my broomstick. I don’t think I can get off.” 

Harry looked at Draco. His pale skin glowed pink. His blonde hair seemed to have frosted tips, ice crystals forming on his scalp. There had never been a more beautiful man, Harry observed. It was just a fact. Draco always looked so dashing in robes. It didn’t matter if he was sweating or if he was freezing, he still looked perfect. In muggle clothes, he was simply aesthetically pleasing. Soft. It was like he was a different person. 

Draco began to laugh. So did Harry. They laughed until their feet touched the ground beside the Ministry and they laughed until they reached the office. 

\--

Harry went back to his office like he always did. He took the same route. He went up the same stairs, which lead him to the same door, which lead him to the same kitchen. He put his briefcase on the same hook, he said hello to the same woman, and he fell onto the same bed. But something was different. The overwhelming heat in his heart was a pleasant change. 

\--

Ginny took Harry’s hand. Not like a fiancee, but like a friend. “We’re going to go in there. We’re going to sit down. And we’re going to tell them,” she said. 

“Yes, we are,” Harry agreed. 

They stood side-by-side, hand-in-hand, like two school children gaping up at their new classroom. Only this place was so familiar to Ginny and Harry. Maybe that’s what made it feel more foreign. The Burrow stretched over them like a watchtower. It was home, but it made Harry want to spin on his heel and walk in the other direction. 

“We’re going to go in there!” Ginny said again. 

“Yes, we are,” Harry agreed. 

Ginny laughed. “So what are we doing out here?” She asked. She pulled him through the door into the house. As usual, it was bustling with warmth and movement and love. Bursting with love. 

“Ginny! Harry!” Mrs. Weasley shouted, hugging them both in a giant sandwich. “You two are the last to arrive. Ron and Hermione are in the living room with the others. Dinner will be in just a moment. Oh, Harry, dear, your face is red! Have you been in the cold lately?” She asked, pinching his cheek. “Don’t tell me, I don’t want to know!” She cried before he could say anything. “Well, off you go.” 

He and Ginny wandered into the other room. “Were you in the cold today?” Ginny asked. 

“Yes,” Harry admitted. “A mountain. It was snowing.”

“Harry!” Hermione cried, throwing her arms around her friend. “Hello, Ginny! I feel as though I never get to see you anymore! I’m just so busy with work these days. They say I’m too young for my next promotion. I say that’s ridiculous. I just have to earn it.” 

Ron chuckled, coming over. “Have you ever thought, love, that you might legally be too young to fit the requirements of the job?” He asked, putting his arm around her. 

Hermione laughed. “That’s ridiculous. An age requirement has never stopped me before, now has it?” She asked.

“How’s Teddy?” Ron asked. 

Harry beamed. “He’s great! He’s with his Dad this week. We got him an owl from our mission today. Malfoy hasn’t sent me the picture of his reaction yet, but I’ll have it by tomorrow. We took him to the beach yesterday. He had the time of his life.” 

“Dinner!” Mrs. Weasley called. Harry, Ron, Hermione, Ginny, and the rest of the growing Weasley family crammed themselves into the small kitchen that had been magically enlarged four times. They arranged themselves around a large, misshapen table as best they could. Harry managed to score a seat in front of his favorite pudding that he would not be sharing. 

“We have an announcement,” Ginny said once everyone was quietly seated. Harry hadn’t expected her to wait around. She was brave. She would say what was on her mind. “Harry and I would like to announce that we are calling off our wedding, We decided it just wasn’t right for us and we’re very happy with our decision. Next week, I’m going to leave for a trip with Luna. We’re going to travel to every wizard city known and write a book together. I won’t be back for several months,” she announced. 

Mrs. Weasley gasped. “No!” She said. “That’s wonderful, dear!”  

Ginny grinned. “I”m very excited! I’ll stop by here before I leave,” she promised. 

“So, no wedding then?” Mr. Weasley asked. He was trying not to grin. The corners of his mouth twitched a bit. 

“No wedding,” Harry said. “But once Ginny moves out, Teddy and Draco are going to move in with me, so I’ll take them to family dinners if that’s alright.” 

“We’d be so happy to have time!” Mrs. Weasley said, with a hand over her chest. 

Ron chuckled. “Well, on that note, I suppose we have an announcement as well,” he muttered. He held up Hermione’s hand to show beautiful matching engagement rings. The diamonds themselves weren’t too large, but they didn’t need to be. They were surrounded by red and gold gemstones that glimmered, even when the light wasn’t shining on them. “There  _ will  _ be a wedding. It just won’t be Harry and Ginny’s.”

Harry and Mrs. Weasley both squealed.

“Merlin’s beard!” Mrs. Weasley cried. “You proposed!” 

“ _ I  _ proposed!” Hermione giggled. “I surprised him at work! He was upset he never gets to see me anymore because of work, so I took the day off and surprised him at the shop. I couldn’t keep the secret, so I just proposed the second I walked in. You should’ve seen his face!” She cried. Ron’s face glowed. 

The Burrow had never been more full of warm, welcoming love. It was the type of love that Harry wanted to bottle and put on a shelf, so he could always have it when he needed to. He was certain his home would be full of it. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello hello!   
> I don't have much to say other than THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU for all of the support!   
> Love you!  
> Lily


	15. Chapter 15: The Letter

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> *WARNING* Not quite smut but somewhat close

After Draco had presented Teddy with the owl, the two became inseparable. Hairy Pooper was quickly changed to Carl. Not as good, in Draco’s opinion, but it made Teddy happy.

“I have another surprise for you, bear,” Draco said as he was putting the small boy to bed. This moment always made Draco feel older than he was. When he bent over his sleepy child to tuck him in, ruffling his blue hair and kissing his cheek, he felt as if he had been doing this for years. It had only been a few days. “We’re moving in with Daddy next week. The three of us are going to live together,” he said softly. 

Teddy’s eyes lit up like gleaming stars. “All three of us?” He asked. 

“That’s right,” Draco said. “And Carl, too. Does that make you happy? Are you excited?” He asked, rubbing his son’s cheek with his thumb carefully. 

“Yeah!” He giggled. 

“Good,” Draco said. “Sweet dreams, Teddy bear,” he whispered. He sat at the foot of the racecar bed until he was certain Teddy had fallen asleep, He watched the little boy’s chest rise and fall under a mountain of blankets. He had moved out of the crib somewhat well. Draco wasn’t allowed to leave until he was asleep, and he took advantage of this new freedom by visiting Draco in his room whenever he woke. The potty training was going slightly worse. Draco had developed a strong hatred for the word ‘pull-ups’, the training diaper they were using. Or- trying to use. 

He slowly stood up, a very difficult task seeing that Teddy’s bed was about a foot off the ground. Silently, he crept out of the bedroom. Astoria had retired early, so Draco had nothing to do other than go to bed himself. He tip-toed across the hallway to his room, where he collapsed. He stared at his ceiling. 

There was nothing magical about it. 

His brain went through the events of the day. The Cupperton case made his brain hurt, they weren’t getting anywhere. They had found the second camp, but what would they do about it? They’d just get trapped again. They hadn’t had a chance to tell Glacia about their discovery, she dismissed them, saying they could tell her at the meeting tomorrow. 

Suddenly, there was a thud. At the window hovered an owl. Draco recognized it instantly- a Hawk Owl. He threw the window open, letting the bird in. It perched on his windowsill and stuck its leg in his face. His hands were shaking as he untied his letter. 

“Go to Burren’s Owlery,” he told it in a hushed voice. 

The bird didn’t so much as glance at him before taking off into the night. 

Draco’s fingers trembled as he opened the letter. 

_ Mr. Draco Malfoy,  _

_ I know who you and your partner are. I know everything about you. I know about your past. I know where you’ve been and how you fought. I know where you now reside, and I know what you love.  _

_ You lost my owls.  _

_ Now, I will lose something of yours.  _

_ Tell the Ministry what you saw today and this letter, and I can take everything in your life away from you. Without hesitant.  _

_ Try me, Mr. Malfoy. _

_ Hawk Owl.  _

He couldn’t breathe. He crumpled the note in his fist and ran as fast as he could to Teddy’s room. The boy remained there, asleep. He ran to Astoria’s room and shook her awake. 

“Astoria! Astoria!” He cried. Tears were streaming down his face. 

She woke up with a gasp. “Draco, what is it?” 

“It’s- it’s something to do with work! There’s no time to explain. I need you to sit with Teddy and don’t leave his side of a second, got it?” He asked, shaking her shoulders. “I need to go see Harry Potter. Do you understand? Do you promise you’ll stay with him?” He demanded. 

“Yes, yes, Draco, of course!” She said, getting to her feet. 

“Thank you. Thank you!” He said. He kissed her forehead. She ran out of the room. Draco took deep breaths, but he couldn’t calm down. The note burned in his hand. He closed his eyes and disapperated. When he appeared into space again, he was in Harry’s living room. “Potter! Potter!” He shouted, throwing open a closed door he believed to be Harry’s bedroom. 

A groggy shirtless Harry sat up, rubbing his eyes. Draco didn’t have time to gape. “Malfoy, wha- what are you doing here?” He asked. 

“What’s going on?” Ginny asked, sitting up. 

“Nothing. Go back to sleep,” Harry murmured. 

“Potter, get up right now,” Draco’s voice said, shaking. He watched as Harry put on his glasses and slowly followed him out of the bedroom and into the kitchen. 

Harry leaned on the table and yawned. “What are you on now, Malfoy?” He grumbled. He stretched his arms over his head. He looked so unbelievably… there. And handsome, Merlin, was he handsome. But there was no time. “Have- have you been crying?” He asked. Draco wiped the tears off of his face with the back of his hand. 

“Read this,” he said, forcing the note into his hand. 

Harry took the note and began to read it. Draco watched his lips as he mouthed the words.  _ I know who you and your partner are… I know where you’ve been and how you fought… I will lose something of yours… Try me, Mr. Malfoy.  _ Draco’s throat began to close up as he watched. Harry’s eyes flickered over it one more time. Two more times. Three more times. He couldn’t believe the words. Finally, he looked up. His mouth hung open for a moment. Tears began to pour down Draco’s face again. 

“It’s okay. It’s fine,” Harry said, suddenly. He was very uncomfortable. He didn’t know what to do. Here they were, in his kitchen. Rivers ran down Draco’s cheeks. They looked beautiful in the moonlight. It reflected off of Draco’s skin. He was a naked star. Harry didn’t know what to do. Where did he put his arms? The note stayed in his hand. He crushed it with all of his strength between his fingers. 

“It’s not okay, Potter!” Draco hissed. “‘I will lose something of yours’ Potter, do you know what he’s talking about? Teddy!” 

“We- we can’t assume that-” 

“‘I know what you love’, ‘I can take everything in your life away from you’, Potter, what else could it mean?” He asked. 

Harry put his hands on Draco’s waist, just to do something to try to console him. “Where is Teddy, Draco?” He asked, breathless. His heart dropped to his stomach like a broken elevator. His hands were shaking. The lump in his throat grew exponentially. 

“Astoria’s guarding him,” Draco said. “What do we do, Potter,  _ what do we do? _ ” 

“We tell Glacia-” 

“NO!” Draco yelled. “Potter, under any other circumstance, I would agree with you. But I will NOT put my  _ son  _ in jeopardy. We vowed to do what’s best for Teddy and I  _ will  _ keep that vow. You can throw away my apartment. You can tear apart my family. You can steal our fortune. You can scar me for life, you can brand me with a Dark Mark, but you will  _ not take my child away from me. _ ” 

Harry squeezed Draco harder to keep his arms from shaking. “I agree with you, Draco. I agree. I don’t- I don’t know what to do.”

Their eyes met and the sea formed again. Green and grey. The waves pushed them together. They splashed against their faces, staining them with salty tears. It was dark, the stars reflected into the water. There was a storm, and it was beautiful. Green and grey. 

“Listen, Malfoy,” Harry whispered. “I don’t know what to do, but-” 

“Shut up, Potter,” Draco said softly. “Shut up! I don’t want you to tell me how it’s going to be okay and how we’ll fix it. Because sometimes, you lose. Sometimes, it doesn’t work out. And I know that’s completely new to you, but you’ve got to accept it.” 

“ _ We are not going to lose our son _ ,” Harry said, pulling Draco closer to him. He could feel the heat of Draco’s body on his own. 

Draco’s eyes flickered from Harry’s eyes to his lips. It made Harry’s heart to flips in his ribcage. “ _ Shut up, Potter _ ,” Draco whispered. He looked down at the man with messy black hair. It made Draco satisfied to know that he was taller, though it was only obvious when they were this close. 

“Make me,” Harry breathed. 

Draco wove his arms through Harry’s and pulled him closer. Their bodies were pressed together. Their bodies were one. Draco pushed his lips into Harry’s. His hands slid up and down Harry’s warm cinnamon skin. They were the sea again. Draco’s lips pushed against Harry’s like two waves fighting for dominance. He pinned Harry against the table, who fought back harder, pushing Draco toward the wall. Harry could taste the tears that had been rolling down Draco’s cheeks. Or were those his own? 

“I hate you,” Harry gasped, pressing his face to Draco’s again. 

“Can’t stand being near you,” Draco responded. 

Harry pulled his face away and shoved Draco against the wall. “Is that right?” He asked, smirking. 

“Merlin’s bloody fucking arse, Potter, stop talking and kiss me,” Draco scowled and pressed his lips on Harry’s again. They moved like the sea. Drifting and dancing in harmony. Nothing had ever been so fluid. So cold. So dark. Green and grey. Harry was certain that as long as he was able, nothing would ever happen to Draco and nothing would ever happen to his son. Their son. His arms were pressed against the wall beside Draco’s shoulders. He could feel every part of Draco’s stomach and chest pressed against his. His soft hands stayed, mapping out Harry’s back like they were searching for treasure. 

“We need to stop,” Harry finally said after several minutes. 

“Says who, Potter?” Draco asked, looking at him with a daring eye. 

Harry sighed. “Says our child, who is currently being guarded by your ex-fiancee. Says my ex-fiancee, who probably just heard all of that. Says the stupid bloody letter on the floor right there,” he said, pointing to the crumpled paper under the table. 

Draco sighed and stepped away from the wall. “What are we going to do?” He asked. 

Harry shook his head and pulled out a kitchen chair for Draco to sit in and slid into his own. “I’m not letting you or Teddy leave my sight until the soul is sucked out of this Cupperton guy,” he spat. He picked up the letter and smoothed it out. 

“Cute, but we can’t move in until next week. And we’ve got to go to work in the morning,” Draco sighed. His heart was still pounding.

“Fine. He’s got to sleep with you tonight, though. And Astoria has to be with him every hour tomorrow,” Harry said. “What are we going to tell Glacia at the meeting tomorrow?” He asked. 

“We tell her that we haven’t got any new clues,” Draco said. He yawned. “What has to get done? What are our priorities?” He asked. “Make me tea before I fall asleep at your kitchen table, Potter. And make it snappy.” 

Harry sighed. “My wand’s in the bedroom,” he whined. Draco wasn’t budging. He sighed again and got up to make tea manually. “I suppose we’ve got to go back to the Hawk Owl camp and make sure it really is vacant. We can use my cloak, I think it’s still in my bag. And then we should check in with the Mindoro Scops camp. We know they exist, but we’ve got to know their motive. What are they doing and why? We assumed it’s bad, but we still aren’t sure what they’re doing.” 

“It’s obvious, isn’t it?” Draco asked. “They’re recruiting more people to be part of the second dark magic revolution. You heard them. They’ve got four recruits this week. One more and they’ll have enough for another team. One more team after that and they’re all set,” he said. 

“How’d you remember all of that?” Harry asked, resting his forearms on the counter as he filled the kettle with water. 

Draco rolled his eyes. “Some of us are less dense than a brick, Potter,” he grumbled. 

Harry chuckled. “Sure, Malfoy. All set for what?” 

“ _ The second dark magic revolution!  _ I swear to Merlin, Potter, are you even listening to me?” Draco asked. 

“Nope,” Harry said. “I can’t stop thinking about the look on your face after I made you stop kissing me. Needy, aren’t you? You must really like me,” He chuckled. 

Draco groaned. “We don’t have time for this, Potter. This is serious!” 

“The last time you wanted me to stop talking, you-” 

“Potter, I’m going to actually murder you.” 

“You wouldn’t. You like me too much.” 

“Push my buttons, I dare you, Potter,” Draco muttered through gritted teeth. Harry smirked at him. He was right, of course. If Draco had been obsessed before, now he was completely consumed. Harry was too handsome, and too hopelessly his. 

Harry sat down again to wait for the tea. “How long have you been hopelessly in love with me? Three years? Ten years?” He asked, casually picking at his fingernails. 

Draco bit his lip and ran his eyes down Harry’s torso. “Mmm… maybe…,” he leaned forward, close enough that he could feel Harry’s breath on his face. “Never,” he said, leaning back again. “You’re the bane of my existence. Can’t stand you.” 

“You’re an unbearable tease.” 

“I know,” Draco grinned. “Where’s my tea, Potter?” He asked. He wasn’t sure how long he had been in love with Harry Potter, but it had been too long.  _ Way too long _ . He thought as he watched Harry’s topless torso move around the kitchen. Now, he was all his. As much as Draco was obsessed, he knew Harry was too. That kiss had been anything but one sided. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *Squawks*   
> It's kind of short but I mean...  
> Come on.   
> You're welcome.   
> Lily


	16. Chapter Sixteen: Home

***WARNING: No one dies, but there’s a lot of talk of death and mental illness I guess***

The next few days were bliss. Well, sort of. They managed to stumble their way through the weekly Tuesday meeting, talking about how they were going to go back to the first Hawk Owl sport to search for clues and to see if it had been used. When they made it to the camp, it was like it have been preserved in a museum. Nothing had changed. They had nowhere else to go from there. It was too risky to tell the Ministry about the Mindoro Scops, but they decided to check back in frequently. 

But it was bliss because Potter was all Draco’s now, whether he liked it or not. 

“You know you’re not supposed to move in here until tomorrow, right?” Ginny asked as she ran around, packing last minute items. 

Draco shrugged. “Try to get rid of me, little Weasley,” he said, smirking. 

Ginny rolled her eyes with a smile. “Harry! Your jerk is here!” She called. “Am I going to need a knife?” She asked, holding up a kitchen knife. “Luna will probably have one. I’ll be fine,” she muttered. 

“Why would you need a knife?” Draco asked, making himself at home. 

“What a lot of people don’t know is that there are magic colonies almost everywhere, but many of them have completely abandoned magic,” she explained. “Wizards and witches still live there, but they’ve stopped using magic. What that don’t know is that suppressing magic can be extremely… unhealthy.” 

“Hey! What’d I miss?” Harry asked, coming out of his bedroom. His black hair was as messy as always, but it was wet, so it only stuck up in strange places. 

Draco grinned. “Your girlfriend was telling me about her little mission. Send us letters, okay, Ginger? I want to hear about how this goes,” he said as he approached Harry. .

Ginny stuck her tongue out. “You’ll have to read about it in my book, whenever it comes out,” she said. “Alright. I’m going to pop over to Luna’s for a bit to make sure she’s got everything all set. We’re leaving pretty early tomorrow morning, so this place will be all yours for your lunch break. You said Astoria’s taking Teddy to daycare?” She asked. Draco nodded. “Good. I’ll be back in an hour or so. You two behave yourselves.” 

“Unlikely,” Draco said. 

With a pop, Ginny was gone into thin air. 

Harry grabbed Draco by the waist and yanked him onto the couch. “Is Teddy all packed and ready?” He asked, resting his chin on Draco’s shoulder. 

“Get off me, freak,” Draco grumbled, sliding off of Harry and still on the other side of the couch. He leaned against the arm and rested his feet on Harry’s lap. “Teddy and I are all set. He’s in bed right now. Astoria’s watching him, bless her heart. I told her I was coming over here to solidify our moving plan.” 

“Did she believe you?” 

“Absolutely not,” Draco chuckled. 

Harry grinned. “Does she know?” 

“Know what?” 

“That you’re hopelessly in love with me?” 

Draco gave him a sizeable kick. “Of course she knows. She knew before I did,” he said. He ran a hand through his hair. Harry was getting used to the two Dracos that he saw on a daily basis. One was this one. The relaxed Draco who wore jeans and sweaters, despite the heat, and had long, fluffy blond hair and no boundaries. He was aesthetically handsome. The handsome that would curl up in an armchair with a book and a stack of blankets. The other one was what Harry liked to refer to in his head as ‘work Draco’. He was the polished and posh Draco who wore sweeping robes, his hair pushed back into a short ponytail. His shoes clicked on marble floors and his hand an air of ‘I’m more important than you’. He looked like a god, and he acted like one, too. Harry was terribly in love with them both. 

“Does your mum know?” Harry asked. 

“She won’t be surprised. She loves you already,” Draco said. “Have you told the Weasleys?” 

Harry shrugged. “Ron and Hermione just got engaged. I’m going to let them ride in the limelight for a while. But you’d better come to dinner on Saturday. You don’t have a choice, actually. I already told them we were coming.” 

Draco closed his eyes and sighed. “Fine. But we’ve got to do brunch with my mother on Sunday.” 

“Okay.” 

“And you’ve got to wear dress robes.” 

“ _ Dress robes _ ?” Harry whined. “I haven’t owned fitting dress robes since the yule ball, Malfoy.” 

“You don’t own dress robes?” Draco asked. “We’ll have to fix that right away. You’d look lovely in Malfoy green,” he said. Harry laughed. “It’s a real color, Malfoy green! My father purchased it with our magnificent Malfoy fortune! It’s very similar to the color of your eyes, in fact,” Draco babbled, giggling as he spoke. 

“I hate you,” Harry chuckled. 

Draco leaned forward and ruffled Harry’s hair. “Nah, you don’t,” he said. “You find me totally irresistible. And you’ve been obsessed with me since you were eleven.” 

Harry grinned. “I love your hair like this,” he said, flicking Draco in the head. It wasn’t very long, it barely grazed the tops of his shoulders. It was platinum blond, the same color as unicorn hair. 

“Oh no, that means I’ve got to shave it off,” Draco said. “Teddy said the same thing,” he ran his hand through it. “After tugging on it, of course. It’s a bit of a tribute to my father. He always wore his hair in a ponytail, like I do at work. The one thing I thank him for is the devilishly handsome Malfoy looks he passed down to me. And- you know- all of the money and such.” 

“You talk about him like he’s dead,” Harry said. 

Draco shrugged. “He might as well be. Sentenced to life in Azkaban doesn’t give you a lot to live for, you know?”

“That’s a shame. Teddy deserves to have at least one pair of functional grandparents.” 

“He doesn’t need grandparents. He’s got us,” Draco said. “Best bloody parents in all of Britain.” 

Harry chuckled. “What are the other parents going to think when we show up to daycare?” He asked. “The boy who lived, his blue-haired son, and his ex-enemy.” 

“Ex? I’ll always hate you, Potter,” Draco said. “But speaking of our blue-haired son, you know this is the last moment we’ll have together before we have to be guarding Teddy every second we aren’t working.” 

“What do you suppose we do about it?” Harry asked. 

Draco’s eyes did that thing where they went from Harry’s eyes, to his lips, to his eyes again. It drove Harry completely insane. Draco got up from his reclined position and leaned over Harry, one knee on either side of Harry’s waist. “I think you know what we should do about it,” he whispered. A lock of his blond hair fell into his face as he looked down at Harry. 

“Merlin, I love your hair,” Harry muttered. He pressed his lips to Draco’s and they were lost. 

\--

The morning after the morning Ginny left was pure chaos. 

“Potter, get out of bed, we’ll be late!” Draco shouted, kicking the useless mass. 

“Nah,” Harry mumbled. 

“Teddy wet the bed, get out now!” Draco spat. Harry sighed into his pillow before rolling out of bed. “Get dressed. Our son can’t be raised with half naked parents walking around! Go make him some breakfast, you useless troll.” 

Harry sighed and smiled. “You’re the worst,” he said, pecking Draco on the cheek before wandering over to the closet.  He was silent for a moment as he put on his robes. “I’m going to get you a cell phone,” he finally said. 

Draco, who was stripping the urine soaked bed, froze. “I haven’t ever needed a phone before, Potter. What makes you think I need one now?” 

“I want to be able to contact you 24/7-”

“Merlin, don’t you think that’s a little controlling, Daddy?” 

“Malfoy do  _ not  _ call me Daddy. You didn’t let me finish. I want to be able to contact you whenever I need to until the Cupperton case blows over. And Teddy’s daycare lady needs to be able to call you if anything happens. Owls are too slow and we won’t be able to just apparate anytime we need each other,” Harry said. “Plus, if Cupperton didn’t expect us to be able to escape his trap the muggle way, he probably isn’t going to expect us to have muggle communications.” 

Draco snarled. “I won’t like it.” 

Harry came out with his robes half on, draping off his shoulder like a cape. “You’ll like it if it saves your son. Besides, there are a lot of fun things we can do with a cell phone,” he said with a grin. 

“Fix your robes, Potter. You look like a hot mess,” Draco grumbled. He dropped the sheets to the ground and pulled the robes over Harry’s shoulders, fastening them tightly across his chest. “Nice face, Potter,” he said. 

“Not to bad yourself, Malfoy,” Harry grinned. 

“Go feed our son,” Draco said. 

Harry sighed and wandered into the kitchen. Teddy waited patiently, playing with his owl and toy snake. Harry was unbelievably happy. 

\--

Harry and Draco checked the Mindoro Scops camp again, but there was nothing new to see. The same two Death Eaters, Janice and Rick. They never had much to say. The Rick guy continued to call every visitor Rick. Janice continued to get very annoyed by this. There was no sign of the Hawk Owls at the camp. Perhaps they had found somewhere else to stay. 

“Listen, Potter, I’m nervous for Teddy,” Draco said as they walked to the Daycare after another long day of sitting in the cold, seeing nothing. 

“Why? He’s fine,” Harry commented. 

Draco frowned. “It’s not about the… Cupperton case. It’s about Andromeda. He lived with her all of his life, and now she’s gone, and he hasn’t mentioned her at all. I’ve been reading up on childhood loss. Do you think the experience of losing her was so painful that his little mind has forced him to forget about it?” He asked. 

Harry shrugged. “Maybe. But he’s a kid and everything that’s been happening is very exciting for him. Living with new people, moving houses, perhaps he just hasn’t had time to remember Andromeda.” 

“Potter, did anyone ever tell you who found Andromeda after she died?” Draco demanded. 

“No,” Harry said softly. He laced his fingers through Draco’s. 

“Teddy did. She took a nap in her armchair and didn’t wake up. Teddy was shaking her, screaming so loudly the neighbors came. They found Teddy in her lap screaming and trying to wake her up. That’s when they brought him to Gillings,” Draco said. “They told my mother, it was her sister who had died, after all. And Teddy hasn’t said anything about it since. They said they gave him some toys in Gillings’ office and he stopped crying and that was the end of it.” 

Harry was silent. He could imagine his son, his beautiful son, crying on the lap  of his dead grandmother. All of the blood washed out of him like a wave. Teddy wouldn’t go through that again. He wouldn’t. 

“Do you reckon we should talk to him about it?” Draco asked. 

“I don’t- I don’t know,” Harry said softly. “He seems happy enough…” 

“But what if something’s going on in his head and he needs help,” Draco said. “What do we do? How do we help him? All of the books I read covered how to explain death to a child, but none of them covered this.” 

Harry shook his head. “Teddy knows death, Draco. He was born during a war. His parents are dead and so is his grandfather. He knows what death is. And he’s got some little kid way of coping with it, I think. This is just another death to him, I suppose.” 

Draco’s heart broke into a million pieces. “Harry… what if he thinks that’s what happens to people he loves. That they’ll all just die eventually. What if he thinks we’re going to die?” He asked. 

“We are, aren’t we? Eventually,” Harry said. 

“Don’t say that Potter! What if he thinks we’re going to die  _ soon,  _ because all of the rest of his family did,” Draco said.  _ We might,  _ he thought. Cupperton’s letter ran laps in his mind. 

“Do they have therapists for children who can’t really talk yet?” Harry asked. “Let’s not bring it up with him yet, we’ve got to know it’s safe first. I don’t want to mess up his little head forever,” he said as they neared the Daycare. 

Draco nodded. He took a deep breath and dropped Harry’s hand. He pushed open the door to the daycare, trying to make his face seem less depressed than he was. 

“Mr. Potter, Mr. Malfoy!” Miss Lola, the nice lady who owned the Daycare greeted them. Draco had huge amounts of respect for this woman. She single handedly watched little wizard children for up to 12 hours a day. Sometimes others would stop by to help her out, but she was always there. She was fairly young, perhaps only a few years older than Draco and Harry. She was a tall woman with a warm, welcoming face. Her curly black hair stuck out in all directions and always seemed to be garnished with hard noodles or glitter, though Draco wasn’t sure she knew it. “Welcome! Teddy had a great day today, didn’t he?” She asked in a voice like honey. 

“Dada! Daddy!” Teddy shrieked, running to his fathers who welcomed him with opening arms.

Miss Lola laughed as Harry tossed the small boy in the air. “Teddy used the potty three times today! He had no accidents!” She announced. 

“No way!” Harry said. “High five, Teddy bear! We’ll have to get ice cream or something tonight to celebrate.” 

“Ice cream!” Teddy shrieked. 

Draco laughed. “Everything was fine, then?” He asked pointedly. 

She nodded. “Of course, Mr. Malfoy. He did turn a toy truck pink today though. It was very exciting! He’s going to be a very, very powerful wizard one day. Most children usually don’t start to show signs of magic until they’re seven,” she said. 

“Wow,” Harry muttered. “We’re so proud of you, kiddo,” he said. 

Teddy giggled and became distracted by a buckle on Harry’s robes. 

“Thank you so much, as always, Miss Lola,” Draco said, handing her a handful of gold. 

Lola bowed her head. “It’s never a problem. Teddy’s such a great kid. He plays with everyone, no matter how old they are or whatever. And the children love his hair. You’ve got a very good child on your hands.” 

“We know,” Draco said fondly. “We’ll see you tomorrow.” 

“Have a nice evening, sirs!” She called as they left. 

They returned to their small apartment. It had a different feeling than before, Harry observed. Before, it had felt like a naked, temporary living space. Some place he only wanted to be when he had nowhere else to go. It seemed routine. Go to work. Go to the apartment. Over and over and over again. Now, it was a home. Teddy’s drawings were taped to several walls in perfect grids, organized by Draco. Toys littered the floors, you could hardly take a step without tripping over Thomas the Tank Engine or Dora the Explorer. Several magic toys whirred and beeped if you got too close to them. When Harry stepped in, he felt welcomed. This was somewhere he wanted to be, not somewhere he was forced to be. Home. 

“What do you want to do the weekend, little bear?” Draco asked as they settled back in. His briefcase sat by the door next to Harry’s. Teddy’s little lunchbox rested beside them. 

“We’ve got go to the Burrow Saturday night,” Harry said, “and Malfoy Manor for brunch Sunday. And Teddy’s got a play date with the neighbors tomorrow night so we can go out with Hermione and Ron.” 

“Are you little bear?” Draco snarled. “I didn’t think so. What do you want to do?” He asked the little boy, strapping him into his highchair for dinner. 

Teddy clapped his hands together and gave an unidentifiable screech of joy. 

Harry laughed. “We’ll figure something out, I’m sure,” he said. 

“Why have we got to meet Weasley and Granger tomorrow night?” Draco asked. He wandered into the bedroom, where his slipped into a tshirt and jeans. He yanked his hair out of its tight ponytail and fluffed it a bit. Harry was smitten. 

“I always hang out with them on Fridays. Besides, we’ve got a lot to tell them,” Harry said, kissing Draco on the cheek and messing up his white-blond hair. 

“What? That you’re obsessed with me?” Draco asked. 

“Sure, Malfoy,” Harry said. He washed his hands and began to prepare dinner for his family. 

\--

“Hey, mate!” Ron said, pulling Harry into a hug. 

“Hello, Harry!” Hermione chirped, kissing both of his cheeks once Ron was done. 

“Hey, guys,” Harry said, grinning. “Malfoy will be here in a few minutes. He forgot to give Teddy’s toy snake to the sitter.” 

Ron made a face. “Malfoy’s coming? Why?” He snarled. 

Hermione scoffed. “Why do you think? You read in the paper about Astoria moving out with her muggle girlfriend! And Ginny’s gone on her trip. You and Draco have moved in together, haven’t you?” She demanded. 

Harry shrugged. “Well, it’s a bit more than that, I suppose.” 

“ _ More than that _ ?” Ron asked. “Listen, mate, I support you. Of course. You’re my best mate. But you can do better than  _ Malfoy.  _ I mean… is he attractive? Yes. He looks killer in robes. But if you were going to… seduce him… shouldn’t you have done it 5 years ago?” He asked, his face slowly glowing more and more red. 

Harry laughed and shook his head. “I dunno. It just happened, I suppose,” he said. 

“You owe me a galleon,” Ron said, elbowing Hermione. 

She rolled her eyes. “We’re really happy for you, Harry,” she said. 

“Hello,” Draco said, walking smoothly toward the group. He let himself smile for once. Here was the casual Draco. Hair lightly flowing down his shoulders, dressed in a plain shirt and jeans again. Harry almost liked this more than robes. Almost. “Talking about me, aren’t you?” He asked with a smirk. 

“What else would we be talking about?” Harry asked, taking his hand. 

“Hello, Draco! So nice seeing you!” Hermione said, hugging him politely. 

“How’s it going, mate?” Ron asked, only slightly bitterly. 

Draco shook his hand. “Pretty well, mate. You?” He asked. Ron smiled and shrugged. “Shall we go get seated then?” Draco asked, gesturing to the bar behind them. They all filed in and found a table towards the back. 

“Draco, I don’t think I’ve ever seen you dressed so… casually!” Hermione said warmly. 

“Yes, well, Potter said I wasn’t allowed to wear robes to a bar,” Draco chuckled, earning himself some giggles from the rest of the table. 

Hermione’s grin faded. “Wait a moment, you still call each other Malfoy and Potter? You’re dating! You’re raising a child together!” She said, slightly surprised. Draco shrugged and sipped his water, putting his arm around Harry’s shoulders. 

“That’s kinky,” Ron muttered. Hermione punched his arm and Harry gave him a hard kick under the table. “Bloody hell! I thought we were at a bar, not a wrestling match!” He spat. 

Draco threw his head back with laughter. “Who knew you were such a laugh, Weasley?” He asked. 

“Well, I wasn’t the Boy Who Lived or the Brightest Witch of Her Age, so I had to be funny,” Ron said. 

“Now, that’s not true,” Draco said. “ _ Weasley is our king _ !” He sang in an annoyingly familiar voice. 

“ _ Weasley is our king! He didn’t let the quaffle in! Weasley is our king! _ ” Draco and Ron chanted in unison. Harry couldn’t help but join in for the next verse. “ _ Weasley can save anything, He never leaves a single ring, That’s why Gryffindors all sing: Weasley is our king! _ ” 

“You’re unbearable, you three!” Hermione shrieked, covering her face when everyone in the bar looked over. 

Harry, Ron, and Draco were all too busy roaring with laughter. 

“You know, though I appreciate the reprise, I believe the original was much better.  _ Weasley was born in a bin-  _ pure genius, if I do say so myself. Oscar worthy,” Draco said, admiring his fingernails. 

Ron roared with frustration, but a smile was still plastered to his face. “Oh, I knew you wrote that!” He shouted, failing at throwing his straw wrapper at Draco, who laughed again. 

Once the laughing had died down, Harry shook his head. “You two are getting along too well. It’s almost concerned,” he said as he watched Draco and Ron throw napkins that had been transformed into airplanes at each other. Luckily, everyone in the bar seemed far too concerned with the soccer match on the TVs to notice the two men throwing realistic planes at each other. 

“What? Are you jealous your boyfriend and I are best mates now?” Ron teased, slapping Draco’s plane out of the air. “Come on, Slytherin, you can do better than that!” He shouted as he created a helicopter, complete with guns that shot grains of salt. 

“You see what I live with?” Hermione whined. “He shot me with one of those little water guns when I got home yesterday.” 

“You loved it!” Ron said. He dodged an attack from Draco’s fighter-jet napkin. 

“Oh, shut it, you too. The waiter is coming,” Hermione said, grabbing the planes before the waiter saw. 

The waiter approached the table with a relaxed stance. His eyes wandered to Draco and rested there for a moment. “Hullo, erm… may I- may I take your order?” He asked weakly. Draco bit his lip and put his arm around Harry again. 

“Just a pepperoni pizza for us all, I think,” he said, smirking. 

The waiter nodded and shuffled away. 

“He was cute, huh?” Harry snarled, eyeing Draco suspiciously. 

“Not my type. I only date chosen ones,” Draco said, grinning. 

Ron laughed. “He couldn’t keep your eyes off you, Malfoy!” He chuckled. “It’s got to be the hair. And the eyes, I suppose. And the tattoo. Tattoos are in these days, I think,” he said.

“Can we stop hitting on my boyfriend please?” Harry whined. Draco’s heart swelled to hear him say that. His arm tightened around Harry’s shoulders. Harry sighed and leaned into him a little bit. 

“Speaking of that,” Hermione began, “you’ve got a lot to think about, haven’t you? I mean, what are you going to say to Mr and Mrs. Weasley? Do you know what you’re identifying as? Are you gay? There are options, you know. Does Teddy know? Does he understand? He’s never really been around a loving relationship, has he?” She rambled on. 

Harry shrugged. “Does it matter, Hermione? I liked Ginny for a while, and now I like Malfoy. It’s not a gender thing, really. It’s just a person thing. And I think Teddy knows. We’ve never really told him, but he’s seen us kiss and whatnot. We sleep in the same bed. He calls us Dada and Daddy. He’s never asked about it. I think he’s just happy to have a family for a while,” he said, looking at Draco for confirmation. Draco nodded and poked at ice cubes with his straw. 

“Well… alright,” Hermione said. 

Ron rubbed her shoulders. “Excuse her. The boss has had her organizing so much, that she can’t stop. She feels the need to organize other people’s lives, too,” he teased lovingly. 

She swatted his hands away. “Shut up, you.” 

“How’s the engaged life treating you?” Harry asked.

“It’s not any different, really,” Hermione said, shrugging.

Draco nodded. “Oh yeah, I can relate. I was engaged to a girl I hardly knew for like a whole two weeks,” he said. They all laughed. “She’s off with a muggle girl now, so I suppose I did something wrong.” 

Ron grinned. “I dunno, mate. It might have been the fact that you’ve been head-over-heels for Harry for ten years. Just a guess,” he commented. Everyone laughed again. 

This was how it was supposed to be. With Ron and Hermione and Draco, Harry felt right. He felt like he was at home. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *Casually skips the Superbowl to write gay fanfiction*  
> Sorry this is a bit late! I've have a super exciting weekend. I got accepted into a select orchestra (I play viola)!!
> 
> Sooooo funny story... I write this on Google Docs and I left my laptop open and my brother saw the tab labeled "Our Kid (Drarry fic)". And then I logged into my Google Docs page at school and accidentally showed my history partner the Google Docs homepage and right at the top was "Our Kid (Drarry fic)" ... so now it's named "Vocab Study Guide". Super not suspicious. 
> 
> Thanks for reading everyone!!! I'm loving all of your super sweet comments!!!  
> Love,   
> Lily


	17. Chapter Seventeen: Trouble in Paradise

***Warning: Cliff hanger! If you can't stand cliff hangers, wait until the next chapter is posted!!***

That night, Harry couldn’t sleep. Nothing was progressing with the Cupperton case and there was only one thing they could do to get it moving again. They couldn’t have another day at work doing nothing. He couldn’t spend every waking hour worrying about Teddy’s safety and checking his phone for updates. And Teddy couldn’t keep sleeping in bed with Harry and Draco. 

“Hey, love, can I talk to you outside for a moment,” Harry whispered as Draco pulled his shirt over his head and got ready for bed. Teddy’s body breathed softly in the center of the bed. 

“Sure,” Draco said uneasily. 

They wandered into the main room of the apartment, leaving the door to the bedroom open. It was now, in the light, that Harry noticed the thin pink scars running across the sides of Draco’s torso. His fingers brushed against them lightly. 

“What are they from?” Harry said in a breath. 

Draco frowned. “You,” he said. 

“Me? What do you mean m-” 

“Sixth year. When you used Sectumsempra on me in the bathroom,” Draco mumbled. “My sides split open, remember? Some things never totally heal,” he said. 

Harry melted. “Oh, Draco, I’m  _ so sorry.  _ I didn’t mean-” 

Draco smiled and touched the side of Harry’s face. “It’s okay, Harry. It was years ago. It doesn’t matter anymore.” 

“No, it does. I left scars on you that will  _ never  _ go away. A constant reminder of what I did to you. The last time someone did something like that to me, I killed him. I’m so sorry, Draco, really.” 

“Darling, you left a scar on me the first time you kissed me, and it healed everything,” Draco said smoothly. He kissed Harry lightly. “Is that what you wanted to talk about?” He asked. 

Harry smiled. “Merlin, you’re so romantic when you’re sleepy,” he whispered. “But no. I actually wanted to talk to you about something else.” Draco looked down at him with a dreamy look in his eye. “I think- I think we have to tell the Ministry about the letter.” 

The dreamy look turned angry. “Absolutely not, Potter.” 

“Malfoy, we’re not going to get anywhere without telling Gillings. We’ve got nothing to do. We need back up. I don’t want to worry about Teddy any more, Malfoy, please.” 

“No.  _ No _ ,” Draco hissed. “I will  _ not  _ put our son in danger.” 

“He’s in danger either way!” Harry said. “I’m tired of thinking he’s been kidnapped everything the bed creaks! I’m tired of spending all day checking my phone, expecting the call saying he’s gone. Draco,  _ we need help! _ ” Harry pleaded. 

Draco shook his head. “No, Harry. We can handle it. We don’t need help!” He argued. 

Harry seized his arm and flipped it over so the Dark Mark was facing them.“The last time you said that, you were trying to tell Snape you didn’t need help murdering Dumbledore, Draco. You’re not that person anymore. You’ve learned from your mistakes. You got help. And the Draco who has help, that’s the Draco I fell in love with. You said you didn’t want to be associated with them,” Harry said, pointing to the Dark Mark. “Then  _ act like it.  _ By not getting help from the Ministry, you might as well be helping them continue to kidnap innocent people, Draco.  _ We need help. _ ” Harry dropped his arm as if he was throwing it to the floor. “Think about it Malfoy. I’m going to bed,” he said before sauntering off. 

Draco felt defeated. But one of his most fatal flaws was that he was stubborn, and he wasn’t about to change his mind. Potter did have a point, though. And he hated him for it, Merlin, did he hate it. He sighed before following him to the bedroom and falling asleep. 

\--

They didn’t speak much the next morning, aside from what they needed to say for Teddy’s general well being. Harry tried to find an opportunity to ask Draco about it, but he wouldn’t answer every time he said something. 

“You know, you can’t ignore me for dinner with the Weasleys tonight,” Harry muttered as they washed dishes, side-by-side. “I don’t know why you’re mad at me.” 

“Not because you called me a Death Eater. How could I be mad about that?” Draco snarled.

“Malfoy, that’s not what I meant,” Harry hissed. “But you are acting like one. Think about it. You’re helping them do what they’re trying to do. We can’t do anything about it without telling Gillings. I’m not sorry,” he spat. 

“Daddys, why are you fighting?” Teddy asked in his tiny voice. 

Draco smiled at him sweetly. “We’re not, handsome!” He said, cheerily. He spun around and kissed Harry. “See? Everything’s perfectly normal. We’re just talking about grown-up things. Eat your cereal! We’re going to the park in a little bit.” 

“Park!” Teddy cooed. 

“Why did you lie to him?” Harry demanded once their backs were turned again. 

Draco paused and looked him in the eye. “For Teddy. We made a vow that we’d do what’s best for him. That’s what I’m doing,” he said. “I’m going to take him to the park. We need a little fresh air. You clean up around here. It’s turning into a pigsty.” 

\--

Harry watched from the window as Draco and Teddy become little dots in  the distance. Then, he spun around and began to write a letter. 

 

_ Glacia- _

_ Draco and I discovered another branch of  Death Eaters several days ago. It’s on a mountain, we’re unsure of what it’s called, and they’re called the Mindoro Scops. While we were there, we set free some of the owls they had captive.  _

_ Later that day, Draco received a letter. _

_ It was from Cupperton, saying that if we told anyone about the Mindoro Scops, they’d take something Draco loved. That could only mean our son, Teddy. So Draco decided we can’t tell anyone out of fear for our son.  _

_ I’m tired of worrying. We need help.  _

_ Harry Potter  _

 

He quickly sealed the envelope and tied it to the foot of his barn owl. “Take this straight to Gillings. Peck her to death if you have to, but make sure she reads it. You have to get this to her, got it?” He asked. The bird cooed. “Right. Off you go.” 

His hand was shaking as he put the parchment and quill away. He couldn’t believe what he had just done. But he knew it was right. Teddy would be in even more trouble if Harry didn’t tell Glacia what was going on. She could help them track down the Death Eaters and insure Teddy’s protection. It felt like a stab in the heart to have to go against Draco. But Draco was right. They made a vow to do whatever they could to save Teddy. For Teddy. Always for Teddy. 

\--

“Have we really got to go to the Burrow?” Draco whined. “That place makes me queasy to think about.” 

“You’ve never been to the Burrow,” Harry said, shoving a light coat into one of the many diaper bags. “They’re family, just like your mother. And you don’t have a choice. You also have to pretend we aren’t fighting.” 

Draco scowled. “Why?” He spat. 

Harry glared at him over his shoulder. “Because Mrs. Weasley will bug us about it until we tell her everything about the Cupperton case and we’ll get arrested and Teddy will be down four parents,” he said. 

“Let’s go,” Draco said bitterly. “Teddy bear! Get ready, we’re going to the Burrow!” 

“The Burrow, the Burrow!” Teddy sang, dancing around. 

Draco allowed himself to smile a small bit. “Alright, you,” he said. He lifted the child onto his waist and positioned himself in the fireplace. “You coming, Potter?” Draco called. This time, when he said ‘Potter’, it wasn’t with affection or humor. It was with a certain coldness that he hadn’t used for years. 

“Yes!” Harry shouted, frustrated. “Go ahead. I’ll be right behind you.” 

“You go first! They’re your family!” 

“You’re impossible,” Harry grumbled a Draco stepped to the side so Harry could climb into the fireplace. “ _ The Burrow _ !” He said into the green flames. He reappeared in the warm living room of the Weasleys. 

A large, round, and merry Mrs. Weasley instantly appeared in front of him. “Oh, Harry! How lovely to see you!” She said, kissing his cheeks. 

Harry grinned and hugged her. “Hello! Draco will be here in a moment with Teddy. He was right behind me,” he said. Before he could say another word, there was a road of flames and Draco materialized in the fireplace with Teddy balanced on his hip. “Here he is!” Harry said, taking Draco hand and leading him into the living room. “Mrs. Weasley, this is Draco. Draco, Mrs. Weasley,” he said. 

Mrs. Weasley placed a hand over her heart before pulling him into a tight hug. “Oh, Draco! It’s so lovely finally meeting you!” She cried. 

“The pleasure’s mine, Mrs. Weasley,” Draco replied kindly. His eyes were warm with admiration.It really was a pleasure to meet her. 

“Hello, Teddy! I’ll take him, Draco, dear. He can go play with Victoire in the other room. My husband, Arthur, is watching her,” she said, stealing the little boy and his diaper bag. “You three are much too thin! No matter, dinner will be in just a few moments. Everyone’s already at the table, go ahead and seat yourselves.” 

“Thank you,” Harry and Draco said together. 

“This way,” Harry said, leading Draco through the house and into the overcrowded kitchen. 

At the table sat four Weasley children and their significant others, Charlie was busy with work. To  Harry’s surprise, Percy had taken time off to come to this dinner. Harry showed Draco to the two remaining seats between Ron and George. The buzzing and chit-chat of the table stopped once they were seated. 

“Hello everyone!” Harry said kindly. “This is Draco. Draco, you’ve met everyone I believe.”

Draco smiled, secretly raging at Harry for bringing up his years at Hogwarts. “Yes, hello,” he said pleasantly. “Such a large family, I haven’t been at a dinner this large since the Auror’s office party this spring,” he said. 

“Ron told me you’re bit of a jokester yourself,” George said, nudging Draco with his elbow playfully. 

“Well, being clever does help with humor, I suppose,” Draco replied with a smirk. 

The rest of the night went on almost too smoothly. No one mentioned the war. The Weasleys accepted Draco with open arms, just as Harry had known they would. They cracked jokes and chatted, like any family. Ron complained about something or another, causing Hermione to hit him, causing everyone to laugh. Draco fit in like a puzzle piece. Harry only wished that he wasn’t so guilty. 

\--

Harry, and Draco sat across each other at their the kitchen table in silence. Teddy had just gone to bed after an hour of stories and soft voices, Mrs. Weasley had pumped him with unreasonable amounts of sugary goods. They didn’t speak to each other. For Teddy. The night was silent, but it was hiding something. Past the cool darkness there was a sense of hot anger and unspoken tension. An elephant in the room that was bigger and fatter than any elephant had ever been. Cars passed by outside. The window was open to let the wind blow gently through and take away some of the heavy air that weighed down their shoulders. 

“Should we talk about it?” Harry asked. “That’s what Hermione always says I should do when I get mad at someone.” 

“No,” Draco said shortly.

Harry shrugged. “Are we ever going to get over this?” 

“Potter, you called me a Death Eater.” 

“I did not! I said you were as good as one!” 

Draco was about to retort when the fluttering of wings interrupted him. A light brown owl glided through the window and landed on Harry’s shoulder. Harry and Draco sat in complete silence, staring at each other. The blood drained from Harry’s face and he felt light headed. 

A sigh escaped from Draco’s lips. “Go on. Open the letter,” he said softly. 

With shaking hands, Harry untied the letter from the owl’s ankle and unrolled it. He was silent as his eyes skirted the parchment. 

“ _ Out loud _ ,” Draco said. He folded his arms calmly. 

Harry cleared his throat. 

“ _ Dear Mr. Potter, _

_ Thank you for bringing light to this issue. Come in to talk to me tomorrow morning and we will settle this issue. _

_ I assure you the life of your son is in good hands.  _

_ Glacia _ ,” he read, his voice shaking. 

Draco nodded and robbed the back of his head. 

“Wait, Draco, just listen to me,” Harry pleaded, letting the letter fall to the floor. 

“Listen to what, Potter? We talked about this!” Draco shouted. “We talked about it! We decided it was safer to do it my way-” 

“ _ You  _ decided, I didn’t-” 

“And what did you do? You  _ went behind my back!  _ Potter, do you have any idea what you’ve done? I thought you were a good auror! When Death Eaters make promises,  _ they do everything they can to  keep those promises!  _ Did you think about that? No? Cause you’re Harry bloody Potter and you don’t think about anyone but yourself!” Tears were streaming down Draco’s face. 

“I do not!”

“You do and I have scars to show it!” Draco screamed, lifting his shirt to remind Harry of the sectumsempra scars. “Do you remember how you gave me these, Potter? I was alone, crying in a bathroom, and you pulled your wand out and thought you could get away with it! Harry bloody Potter can use whatever spells he wants and walk away unpunished! Did my feelings even cross your mind that day, Potter?  _ I was crying in a bathroom! And you ripped me open! _ ” 

“Draco, I’m sorr-” 

“You aren’t sorry, Potter, you aren’t! Because you did the same thing again today! You didn’t think about how I know Death Eaters and you didn’t think about my feelings and now you’ve  _ PUT OUR SON IN DANGER BECAUSE YOU ONLY EVER THINK OF YOUR DAMN SELF, HARRY POTTER! _ ” Draco screamed. He couldn’t see, tears poured down his face. 

Harry tried to touch Draco’s shoulders, but he yanked away as if his touch was poisonous. “It’s going to be okay, Draco! We’ll talk to Glacia!” 

Draco took a deep breath and walked as far away from Harry as he could get. “No, I don’t think we will. You go ahead without me,” he said softly, shaking. He knew what he had to do. 

“Dada! Daddy!” Teddy wailed. Harry had never heard a child so miserable in his life. “ _ Why fight? Why fight? _ ”

Draco ran to his son and help him in his arms. “It’s okay, baby, it’s okay. You and I are going away for a little while. It’s going to be okay, sweetheart. Da- Harry is going to stay here, okay? It’s just going to be you and me,” he said. He was shaking out of control now. 

“NO! NO! YOU CAN’T TAKE MY SON!” Harry screamed.

Draco gave Harry a sad look before he apperated, Teddy in his arms. They were gone. They were gone. They were gone. Draco had taken Teddy and left. They were gone. Every muscle in Harry’s body trembled. He couldn’t control his movements. He fell to the cold floor. What could he do now? What was there left to do? Draco and Teddy were gone and he didn’t know where they could be. 

He heard footsteps on the other side of the room, but he couldn’t process them. Everything hurt. Draco and Teddy were gone. They were gone. The world went dark. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *raptor noises*  
> AAAAAHHHHHHHHH HAPPS ARE THINGENING   
> Sorry for the cliff hanger!!  
> Love you!  
> Lily


	18. Chapter Eighteen: A Mother's Flowerbed

Draco went the only place he could think to go. Home. He arrived at the long, unforgiving driveway to the Malfoy Manor, clutching the screaming Teddy in his arms. He tried to quiet and soothe the child, but nothing would calm him. Draco ran to the grand entrance and pounded on the door as hard as he could. 

When the door opened, it was his mother. She looked frazzled, dressed in her bedclothes and exhausted. She didn’t say anything when she saw the look on her son’s face with his own child clutched desperately and tightly in his arms. She just opened her door wider and them in. 

She watched as her son tried to soothe the screaming boy. Both of them were crying. Her son’s hands were trembling as they cupped her grandson’s cheeks. Her son sat on his knees so he was eye-level with his child. He kept saying “it’s going to be okay, Teddy!” and “we’re safe now!”. She wasn’t sure what they were safe from, but she knew they would be safe. The scene reminded her of a similar scene, in which she held her son in her arms and told him everything was going to be alright. Neither of them believed her. Her son was older then than his was now, and it mattered. 

The little boy couldn’t understand what was going on or why his father had taken him away from his other father. His little head was so tired. So confused. There had been too much moving around, from house to house, meeting Auntie Ginny and Auntie Astoria. And suddenly they were gone and he was in one house and his fathers were in love. But now they were in a new place and his father was crying and his other father wasn’t there and he just wanted his bed and his toy snake. 

“Draco,” the mother’s voice finally cut through the sobs. “Draco,” she said again, softer. 

His face melted. “Mother!” He cried. 

She walked swiftly over to her son and held him in her arms. The child watched in awe. Who was this woman who was holding his father they way he held him. The woman smiled at you. 

“Hello, little one,” she said in a sweet voice. “Let’s get you to bed, shall we?” She took his hand and lead him away. 

“Dada!” Teddy called. His father was on his knees in the entrance room with his face in his hands. 

The nice woman picked him up. “It’s alright, darling. Dada will still be here when you wake up. I’m going to talk to him for a little bit while you sleep, alright. Everything’s going to be okay, my precious child,” she said. He believed her. 

She tucked Teddy into a spare bed and assigned five house elves to stand guard. Many people suggested that Mothers had a sixth-sense, and they knew when children were in trouble. She could never explain to anyone why she knew she needed the house elves to guard him, but she did. And she never went against her instinct. 

“Mother, mother,” her son sobbed when she returned to the entrance. He was still crumpled on the floor.  

“Draco, get off the floor,” she said, but there was nothing harsh about her tone. He let her guide him to the nearest seat. She used her wand to conjure a warm blanket to comfort him. “Tell me everything,” she commanded when she knew he was ready. 

“I- I can’t. It’s work stuff,” he said through sobs. 

She smiled. “I’m your mother, Draco. You can tell me anything.” Draco wiped his face on the blanket and closed his eyes. His mother knew what it meant. She lightly pulled his arm out from under his blanket and looked at his Dark Mark. It was faded, more of an odd scar at this point. It laid nearly submerged in a flower bed of bright, beautiful colors. “This matters,” Narcissa said. “This matters, Draco. Don’t try to cover up your past. Learn from it. Talk to me.” 

Draco’s eyes met hers. He told her everything. Everything from the first day working on thw Cupperton case, to his agreement with Astoria, to his first kiss with Harry, and to his last. The more he talked, the more he cried. He felt weak. Draco Malfoy was growing so, so tired of feeling weak. It was a deep weight at the base of his heart. He knew he was getting defensive. He knew he was lying. He knew he was weak. The feeling was all too familiar and he allowed it to sink deep into his bones and through his veins. It felt so normal. He was so tired of feeling weak. 

Narcissa smiled at him when he was done. The light of the moon coming through the window made her dull black hair shine gold. “Do you still love him?” She asked.

“I don’t want to. I’m furious with him. He betrayed me, mother.” 

“That’s not what I asked. Do you love him?” 

“Of course I do,” Draco said with pain and bitterness. “I loathe him so much, and yet, I can’t seem to stay away from the bastard.” 

Narcissa bowed her head. “Let yourself have feelings, my child. Embrace them.” She took his arm again. Her fingers so lightly traced over his Dark Mark, the same way they had hundreds of times before. “Lay in a flowerbed of your feelings. Don’t cover yourself up, but let them surround you. Let them change your meaning.” 

“I’m too emotionally distressed to know that that means, mother.” 

She smiled and kissed the tattoo. “I love you, my dear, and I’m so proud of you. You aren’t a Death Eater, dear, but you can’t let those memories destroy you. The Malfoy name might not be your proudest feature, but wear it with confidence. Malfoy means family over everything- the one thing pure-blooded families tend to have in common. And you stuck to that today. But Harry Potter is part of your family, too. Do you still have the cell phone he gave you.” 

“Yes. He hasn’t tried to call me though.” 

“Get some rest, my love. Perhaps you will call him in the morning.” 

Draco got off of his chair and walked over to his mother. He looked her in the eye for several moments. Then, he pulled her into his arms. “Thank you,” he muttered. 

It was enough. 

\--

The next morning, Draco awoke in his childhood bed to the light of the sun peaking through his balcony door. He rolled over and groaned. He was peaceful until the memories of the previous night stormed his head. And then his son. 

“Teddy,” he said suddenly. He sat upright too quickly and his head spun. “Teddy!” He shouted, running from his room and into the hallway. 

Instantly, music and laughter filled the depressed home. Surely it couldn’t be- He rounded the corner and stepped down the grand marble staircase, making his way to the casual sitting room. There, his mother was playing piano for the first time in years, to Teddy who was laughing and singing along. 

“Oh, hello, Draco!” Narcissa sang, pausing for a moment. She had never looked younger. 

“Dada!” Teddy cried, laughing and running over to hug his father. 

“We’ve been playing all morning. We were hoping a bit of light music would rise you from your sleep and put you in a nice mood. The house elves are going to have brunch ready for us soon,” Narcissa said. Her fingers rested on the keys. 

Draco smiled and held his son. “When we the last time you played?” He asked. 

She returned the smile. “Years ago. Years and years and years. Who knew all it took was one adorable little boy to brighten my spirits,” she said softly. Her voice was filled with admiration.

“Yes, Teddy seems to have that effect on people,” Draco muttered. 

“Dada, look at snake!” He said gleefully. 

“No, sweetie. We left snake at home, remember?” 

“Oh, yes,” Narcissa said. “He was whining something about a snake, so I got one for him. He’s trained, of course,” she added. A small red and white corn snake danced along the keys of the piano.  “We’ve named him Sugar.” 

Draco shook his head. “Of course. Why not?” He muttered. “I’m going to go… make a phone call,” he announced, placing Teddy on the ground before wandering away. It was almost ten o’clock, so Potter should have met with Glacia already. Draco was curious as to what she could say. He dialed Potter’s number and held the cell phone up to his ear. It rung for several minutes before it instructed him to leave a message. He decided to ignore it, Potter was probably just ignoring him. He decided to call Glacia. She answered on the first ring. 

“MALFOY!” She roared. “Where are you? I’ve been trying to get ahold of you and Potter all morning! Why weren’t you here for the meeting?” She demanded. 

“I- I- Potter and I had a fight, ma’am. I left. Potter was supposed to be there, though,” he stumbled. Why hadn’t Potter gone to the meeting?

“Yes, well come in  _ immediately!  _ Potter’s missing, I’ve owled him and called him at least six times. No response. I need to secure protection for you and your son, and we must stop Cupperton once and for all. We can not afford anyone else to go missing before the Profit starts making shit up, Malfoy. I’d be surprised if they didn’t know already that their Chosen Boy is gone!” Glacia barked.

Draco held the phone out in front of his face to make sure he was hearing this right. “Wait, Potter’s missing?” He asked. 

“He’s not at home, and he’s not with you, so I’d say so, yes,” she said. “Just get in here as soon as you can, Malfoy. Is your son safe?” 

“Yes.” 

“Good. Get here fast.” 

Draco nodded. “Yeah. Yeah, I will,” he said and hung up. “Mother,” he said, walking swiftly into the other room. “He’s missing. They need me to come in,” he said softly. 

The music stopped and so did Teddy’s giggling as Narcissa looked at her son. “Draco, what exactly did the note say?” She said in a whisper.

He closed his eyes, wishing this wasn’t actually happening. “ _ I know what you love… Now I will take something of yours… I can take your life away from you _ ,” he said, reciting the scariest bits. “It- it didn’t mean-” he cut himself off. 

“Harry,” he and his mother said at the same time. 

“I’m going into the office,” he said, suddenly. “I’m going to find Potter and I’m going to kick his bloody… bum… for not listening to me,” he grumbled with a side glance at Teddy. “Mum, watch Teddy please,” he said with pleading eyes. 

Narcissa bowed her head. “Of course. You’re not going in dressed like that, are you?” She asked. He was still dressed in his jeans and t-shirt from the night before and his hair hung loosely over his shoulders. Narcissa shook her head. “No matter. Just, remember Draco; you’re a Malfoy in a bed of flowers,” heat rushed through his Dark Mark, “and your mother will always be with you,” she said. 

Draco smiled. “Thanks, mum,” he said, much more casually than he was used to. “I love you. I love you, Teddy bear. Be good for Granny, won’t you? I’ll be back…” he didn’t date finish that sentence. “I love you,” he said again. Teddy ran over and hugged his shins. “I love you. I’ve got to go.” He stepped into the fireplace. With a pop, he was gone. 

“Malfoy! There you are!” Glacia snapped in the busy entrance hall once she saw him appear. “Tell me everything about the note, have you got it with you?” She asked. 

“No,” Draco said. “But I remember what it said.” 

“Wonderful. Walk with me, Malfoy,” Glacia said. She began to walk in long, commanding steps. Draco did his best to follow. “Why are you dressed like that? You’re at work? It’s not a problem right now. Tell me about the letter.” 

Draco nodded. “One day, as we were going on lunch break, Potter and I spotted a Hawk Owl. We captured it and then followed it to a second Death Eater camp called the Mindoro Scops. Later that night, I received a letter saying if we told anyone about the Mindoro Scops, they knew what I loved and they would take it away from me. Harry and I assumed it meant our son, Teddy, but, ma’am, it didn’t. I told Harry not to tell anyone because I refuse to put our son in jeopardy, but he went behind my back and told you. Now he’s gone. I’m certain the Mindoro Scops took him. But I’m unsure as to where he is now. They wouldn’t bring him back to the Mindoro Scops camp that we know about, would they?” He asked. 

Glacia shook her head and gritted her teeth. “No, they wouldn’t. But I have a sneaking suspicion as to where they  _ would  _ take him.” 

“Where?” Draco asked. 

She sighed. “While you two have been working on Cupperton himself, I’ve been covering more about the disappearances of the two shop owners who were supposedly kidnapped. I was looking through some records of the owlery and guess who the previous owner was?” She asked. Draco frowned. “A man under the name of Delano Cupperton,” she said. 

“No!” Draco said. “How could we have missed that?” He asked. 

She shrugged. “How couldn’t you? The owlery was recorded as belonging to Delano Cupperton, but Delano Cupperton never was recorded to have owned and owlery. It was very illegal, based on what I’ve gathered. At the very beginning of the war, his cousin, Michael Burren, inherited the owlery from his uncle. But Cupperton believed that the owlery was rightfully his. He had been his uncle’s apprentice for several years growing up. But when he voiced his opinion about the inheritance of the owlery, his family laughed. He was viewed as an oddball in the family, I suppose,” she explained. 

Draco’s eyes widened. “So he joined Voldemort to have some power and to scare his family! But they knew of his status and put him in very low ranks, despite his loyalty,” he said. 

Glacia nodded. “Exactly.” They stepped into a half-empty elevator. Everyone seemed to be staring at Draco as if he were naked. “The games office, please,” Glacia told the bellhop. “So he joined the Dark Lord to scare his cousin out of the inheritance. But he wouldn’t give the owlery up because he believed Cupperton would only use the owls for his own personal benefit, racing them illegally and such. So, Cupperton killed him and it was recorded as a suicide. He owned the owlery for two months before the war ended and he had to go into hiding. The next Burren son took over. Until, his cousin kidnapped him. And that’s where we are now.”

Draco had so many questions. “But- but- how?” He asked. “How do you know about all of this?”  

She sighed. “Owlery ownership records show the transfer of power, past Death Eater accounts confirmed that he had been a Death Eater, and his family confirmed the rest.” 

“But why did he start kidnapping people? Why the new Dark Mark?” Draco asked. 

“People do crazy things for power. He was collecting very very low status Death Eaters and war supporters for a second war. His family says after he joined the war, he started to get even stranger. He got really into Dark Magic and began to talk about a ‘Dark Magic Revolution’ before he disappeared into hiding.” 

“Why didn’t you tell us any of this?” Draco asked. The elevator stopped moving and they got off, walking down yet another hallway.

“Could it have helped you with your case? Yes. But I was interested in seeing what you two could do on your own,” Glacia said. She gave a smile as if she was in pain. “But now I see how that was a mistake.” 

Draco nodded and thought some very rude things. “Now where are we going? Where do you think Cupperton took everyone? And why did he take Rosmerta?” He asked. 

“The one place Cupperton really wanted. The owlery.  He took Rosmerta because he had accidentally spilled his plan to her and it made him seem even stranger,” Glacia said. “So, Malfoy, this is your case. What do you say we do next?” 

He frowned. “We find Potter.” 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Snow day tomorrow!!!  
> Hope you guys liked that little kinda cliff hanger. More Harry POV to come.   
> I really wanted to emphasize the kind of magic that a mother has. Draco sometimes forgets about his mother and how important she is, but she's extremely vital to his livelihood and his story line. Did I spell that right? There are no red squiggly lines haha. She's the one who sort of redeems him after he's a Death Eater and she saves Harry, so she's a bit of a bonding force for them I guess.   
> Also it's my mom's birthday haha.   
> I'm also trying to really show Teddy's amiable, people-pleasing characteristics. He's a Hufflepuff, so I think he will go out of his way to make others happy, even if it's their downfall. He values happiness over everything, and that's kind of poking through in the way he ignores his grandmother's death, which probably isn't very healthy. But right now he's too darn cute and everyone loves him.   
> Thanks for reading!  
> We've reached our final few chapters!!!  
> Love you,  
> Lily


	19. Chapter Nineteen: Small Boys

Harry had never known what it really felt like to be totally alone. Even in his worst moments when he felt Hermione and Ron couldn’t understand him, the Dark Lord was still in his head. After he was killed and Harry had his thoughts to himself, he was surrounded by people who loved him. He was never totally alone. Until now. 

He woke up in a closet. His wrists and ankles were bound together, his wand nowhere to be found. The closet was filled with a broom (for sweeping, not for flying), several giant bags that looked like they contained dog food, and some rectangular boxes on a stacked shelf. The boxes seemed to be… squeaking. The smell hit him almost instantly. It was all too familiar. The heavy stench of owl dung. 

His head spun and his vision was blurred, but that might have had to do with the crack that seemed to have formulated down the center of his left eyepiece in his glasses. There were rips in the back on his shirt, but the rest of him seemed to be in one place. 

Suddenly, he felt something in his back pocket vibrate. His phone! Of course, whoever stashed him here didn’t think to take his phone! He rolled onto his stomach and pushed himself onto his feet. Then, he rubbed his back against the shelf until his phone popped free of his pocket and clattered to the floor. It was still vibrating. Before he could do anything, the door opened and a tall person with their face shielded from his vision by a hood opened the door. 

“Yes, I thought I heard movement,” the person grumbled. “What is this?” They stopped Harry’s vibrating phone on the ground and picked it up. “What is this?” They asked again. Harry couldn’t place whether the voice was male or female. 

“M- my cell phone,” Harry said.  

“Yeah, it certainly is. Who’s this calling?” The person asked, looking at the screen. “Says ‘The Most Wonderful and Magical Man to Ever Grace the Earth With His Presence Who I Love and Adore’. Who’s that?” They asked with a puzzled look. 

“Ugh! Malfoy,” Harry groaned. Why had Harry let him put his own contact information in? It would explain why Malfoy refused to call him before, though. Why was Malfoy calling him right now? What time was it? Had Harry missed the meeting with Glacia? Thoughts danced through his head, but all he could really think was that he wanted his son back. 

The person grinned. “Malfoy, eh? Your little work partner? Well… you won’t be seeing him again,” they said. They crushed the phone in their fist, bits of it falling to the cold, cement floor. “Carrying a cell phone was a bad move, Potter. Now, we’re just going to have to punish you for it. Follow me,” they said, turning out of the doorway. 

“I can’t!” Harry called. “You’ve bound my ankles.” 

They glared at him. “Hop,” they growled.

Harry sighed and began to pathetically hop behind the tall person. He recognized where he was immediately; Burrens’ owlery. They entered the main room with all of the birds, who cooed when they opened the door. “SHUT UP!” The person snapped at them. It wasn’t as light and beautiful as it had been the first time Harry visited. None of the birds flew around in the dome ceiling, they were all bound to their branches with rope. No light peeked through stain glass ceiling, and the scent of bird poop was so strong, it made Harry’s head hurt. The cries of the angry birds rang in his ear and echoed in his head. If Malfoy was here, he would have freed them on without a side glance. But he wasn’t. He was hiding with Teddy. He was gone. 

“Where are we going?” Harry asked as they cross the large circular room. “Why are you doing this to these birds?” 

“Can’t have them going and telling someone we’re here, can we?” The person replied. “And it’s none of your concern where you’re going. Just keep hopping.” They pushed open the door into another small, dark room. A single display stood in the center of the room with a small lightbulb hanging from the top of it. 

“A Pensieve,” Harry breathed as he approached it. It looked like a bowl balanced gently on  a pedestal. 

“So you recognize it?” The person asked. 

“Yeah. What memories are you going to show me? Why?” Harry asked. 

The person  laughed and forced Harry’s face into the pensieve. 

\--

There was a flash of green light and Draco appeared in Weasley’s wizard wheezes. 

“Merlin’s bloody ballsack, Malfoy!” Ron screamed, clutching his chest. “You have got to warn me when you’re going to use that thing! You almost gave me a bloody heart attack!” He shouted. 

“Harry’s missing,” Draco breathed. 

“What?” Ron asked. 

“ _ Harry’s missing _ !” Draco said. “He’s been kidnapped, like Burren and Rosmerta. We had a fight last night and I took Teddy and now he’s gone!” He shouted. 

Ron gave him a puzzled look. “Harry can’t be missing. He’s Harry.” 

Draco sighed. “Well he’s bloody missing, Weasley! And we think he’s in the owlery.”

“Why would he be in the owlery?” Ron asked. “He’s got an owl.” 

“Long bloody story! Can you help me break in or what?” Draco whined, running a hand through his hair. Ron stared at him with a blank look on his face. “Listen, Weasley. Your best friend is missing and he might be trapped in that owlery. I may be furious with him beyond the point of words, but my son has lost enough family already. He’s not going to lose Harry, too!” He snapped. “So  _ HELP ME GET INTO THE BLOODY OWLERY! _ ” 

Ron blinked and nodded. “Yeah. Yeah,” he said, dropping the candies in his arms on the counter and pulling an apron over his head, revealing maroon and gold robes. Draco winced. “Don’t. George is making me wear them. He says it goes with the theme,” Ron snarled. 

Draco bit his lip trying not to laugh. “I’ll make fun of you later. Let’s go get Potter, the bloody idiot.” 

“What did he do?” Ron asked, fiddling with a set of keys. 

“We got a threat from a bunch of Death Eaters and I told him not to tell anyone and he told someone,” Draco explained quickly. “What are those keys?” He asked. 

Ron grinned. “The landlord thought it would be safe for me to have a key to the backdoor of every shop in Hogsmeade. He heard I did auror training. Funny, he didn’t seem to hear the part that I only did like… two weeks of auror training. The only problem is I don’t know which key is Burrens’.” 

Draco sighed and pulled out his wand.  “ _ Accio owlery key _ ,” he said. The key slipped off the ring and fell into his palm. “Sometimes I think you’re a muggleborn, Weasley, so you forget to use magic. But now I know you’re just plain stupid,” he said. 

“Rude. Okay, let’s go!” 

\--

***WARNING: Get’s a little dark and graphic here***

The memory brought Harry to  a small, cramped room that smelled strongly of dust and cheerios. The room was stuffed with antique furniture. The curtains had a hideous flower print, there was a grand piano against the wall that was crammed between a china cabinet and a tea cup display. Child’s toys littered the floor. Building blocks, cars, and dolls laid, untouched. On the wall were several family portraits, featuring a loving man and woman and a pink-haired child. In the center of the room was an armchair, with the same floral pattern that had vomited on the curtains. A woman laid peacefully in the arm chair, not moving a muscle. Andromeda Tonks. 

“No,” Harry breathed. “Why have you brought me here?” He asked. 

The person chuckled. “I was told to punish you. And punish you I shall,” they said. “Do you hear that?” 

Harry listened. He heard the pitter patter of small feet hitting the ground. It made his heart ache for his son. He didn’t know where he was or what he was doing. Did Teddy even miss him? Or was he having too much fun with Draco? Tears formed in Harry’s eyes. 

“Nana!” Teddy shouted, coming into view. 

“NO! TEDDY!” Harry wailed. He tried to run forward, but the person was holding his wrists. 

“He can’t hear you. This is a memory,” they said.  

Harry choked down a sob as he watched Teddy toddle into the room. He paused, before turning away and going to turn the light on. “Wake up, Nana!” Teddy sang. Tears poured down Harry’s cheeks in a silent river. “Wake up, wake up, it is time to wake up!” The child danced in circles around the arm chair. 

“TEDDY! TEDDY, COME TO DADDY!” Harry screamed. 

Teddy noticed the woman not moving and climbed onto her lap. When that didn’t work, he began to bounce around for a moment. “Wake up, Nana! Wake up, Nana!” He sang, thought the pure childlike joy was being drained from his voice. Nana didn’t wake up. Teddy pulled at her hair and her face. He hit her arms. He bounced on her lap. He yelled, and yelled, and yelled, and Harry had no choice but to watch.

_ It’s just a memory. It’s just a memory _ . Harry thought to himself. But that made it worse. It  _ was  _ a memory. This had happened to his son. It wasn’t just a nightmare. It was reality. And he would never be able to convince Teddy otherwise. 

“NANA! NANA!” The memory of Teddy cried, shaking her and clinging onto her. His voice was so shrill and so pained, it made Harry wish it was him instead who was forced to find Andromeda. He would do anything for Teddy not to have experienced that. Teddy cried louder and harder than anyone in the universe ever had before. His shrieks sent shivers through Harry’s bones. He wanted to hold him and tell him it was going to be okay. Anything to keep the child from being alone there.  _ Anything.  _

Harry spun around and faced the person holding him captive. “YOU ARE DIABOLICAL!” He screamed. “WHY ARE YOU SHOWING ME THIS?” 

The person sighed. “And to think, you haven’t even questioned how I got this memory in the first place.” 

Harry’s body froze. Teddy continued to cry, but Harry couldn’t move. Hot rage filled his chest to the brim. How  _ had  _ they got the memory? Harry began to tremble. “WHAT HAVE YOU DONE TO HIM? WHAT HAVE YOU DONE TO MY SON?” He screamed. He yanked his hands free and kicked the person with all of his might, sending them skidding across the the green, dusty memory carpet. 

“ _ Stupefy! _ ” The person yelled, shooting Harry with a bright red light. Harry fell to the ground. “Trust me, Potter. It’s not in your best interest to fight with me,” they grumbled, suddenly less calm. 

Harry gasped in pain and sat up. “Take me out of here,” he ordered. Teddy was still wailing in the background. 

The person shrugged. “Suits yourself. I have another memory to show you.” 

Suddenly, the scene changed. They were no longer in Tonks’ living room, and Teddy’s cries faded away. A new room materialized. It was a grand, green colored room featuring well-kept furniture.  Unlike the previous room, this one was not at all cluttered and very well kept. Two people sat alone on a couch. One of them had very fair hair, pushed back across his forehead. The other was a tall, dark woman, with her hand on his shoulder. 

“Draco,” Harry breathed. Again, his heart yanked downwards. 

“I can’t do it, mother,  _ I can’t _ ,” Draco cried quietly into his hands. 

Narcissa smiled and rubbed his shoulder. “I know, dear. I know. But you’ve got to,” she said softly. 

Draco looked up. He couldn’t have been older than sixteen, judging by his tired eyes from the anxiety. He looked small… Harry never recalled Draco being that small before. The world was too big for the small boy with platinum hair. 

“Mum, is he going to kill me?” Little Draco whispered. “If I don’t kill Dumbledore, is he going to kill me?” He asked.

His mother kissed the top of his head. “Oh, Draco,” she said. “He’s going to do much worse than that. I’m sorry. I’m so, so sorry,” she cried. “I never wanted this life for you, my darling! I never wanted you to-” she cut herself off with a sob. She and her son collapsed into each other’s arms. “Show me. How are they healing?” She asked. 

Draco leaned back and lifted his shirt, revealing thick white bandages around his torso, stained with blood. 

“I did that,” Harry whispered. He was crying again. He didn’t know what else to do. 

“Oh, Draco,” Narcissa said, tracing them with her fingers. 

“Shouldn’t they have healed by now?” Draco asked anxiously. “He didn’t use dark magic, did he? They should be healed by now.” 

She sighed. “Perhaps. But you are not yourself. You’re worried. You aren’t eating as much as you should be. He might of used a dark spell, Draco, but Harry Potter felt regret. And that’s what matters. If he hadn’t… Merlin knows what would have happened, my dear,” she said. 

Harry rested his face in his hands. He didn’t know what to feel. “Why… are you doing this to me?” He asked in a shaky voice. 

“Torture, Potter,” the hooded person said. “It is interesting, though. You didn’t react the way I expected.” 

Harry thought for a moment, watching the young Draco envelope his mother in a hug. 

Suddenly, the scene began to shiver, as if a wave had flown through it. Draco and Narcissa began to slowly drift away. 

“What’s happening to them? What’s going on?” Harry asked. 

“I don’t know!” The person said. 

Harry’s heart thudded in his chest like a race horse as Draco disappeared again. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yaaaaaaaay things are happening.   
> Sorry I'm writing so slowly! I'm trying to piece things together at the same time you guys are, so it's kind of challenging to not be predictable, yet stay with the characters' personalities.   
> I've been reading other fanfics and it makes me SO MAD when the author doesn't stick to Harry and Draco's personalities. There's one that keeps popping up on my Tumblr that's really good and beautifully written about Draco getting a massage from Harry, but it's not anything like their characters and it makes me so mad! Like it's great but I keep just thinking "Oh my gosh Draco would never say that" or "Harry would never do that!" and it drives my crazy!  
> I don't know, maybe it's just me.   
> Anyway, I'm going to try to get another chapter out before Tuesday because I'm praying for a snow day tomorrow. It's snowing pretty hard right now and there were literally riots at school on Friday because people wanted a snow day.   
> OH! For those of you who didn't read past the warning, basically Harry is being tortured with memories of teddy crying over his grandmother's dead body and Draco not wanting to kill Dumbledore and his sectumsempra scars.   
> The end is near!  
> Thanks for reading!  
> Lily


	20. Chapter Twenty: Enough Trouble

“Hurry, Weasley, you’re walking too slow!” Draco snarled.

“We look ridiculous running across Hogsmeade!” 

“Don’t make me laugh, Weasley, you already look ridiculous in those robes. Walking a bit faster won’t make us look any sillier,” Draco said.

Ron huffed. “Come  _ on,  _ Draco, these robes are heavy and it’s hot out!” He whined, but he quickened his pace. “Hey- shouldn’t you have… back up or something? Why are you doing this on your own? Does the Ministry know what you’re doing.” 

“I told them not to come.” 

“And why the bloody hell would you do that?” 

Draco refused to make eye contact. “Because this is  _ my  _ rescue mission,” he spat. 

Ron shook his head. “You’re just like Harry, you know. Both of you have got to be the hero. Only he’s got to do it because he’s obsessed with doing what’s Good and you’re just doing it because you’re selfish,” he said. “You don’t want to save Harry because it’s right. You want to save him because you love him and you don’t want to raise Teddy on your own.” 

“So?” Draco asked. “Either way, I’m doing it, aren’t I?” He demanded. Ron didn’t answer. “Do you want to raise a toddler on your own Weasley? It’s not easy!” 

“I’m not saying it’s a bad thing to save him for selfish reasons!” Ron said. “I would do the same thing! I’m so glad Hermione doesn’t want children yet. I don’t think I could handle it.” 

“Your job is literally to entertain children.” 

“Yeah, but it’s funny when they aren’t yours!” Ron said. They made it to the owlery, which didn’t hoot as it normally did. “Now what?” Ron asked. 

Draco shrugged. “We go in.” 

“Wait.. don’t we need a plan or something?” Ron asked. “Harry and Hermione usually make a plan before we go barging into these things. Of course, they never work out, but there usually is one.” 

“You want a plan, Weasley?” Draco asked. “The plan is we go in there, we find Potter, I slap him silly, and we go the hell home. Where I will then kiss him silly,” Draco announced. 

Ron’s face inverted. “GROSS! I DID NOT NEED TO HEAR THAT!” He shouted. 

Draco laughed. “You’re such a child, Weasley!” He said. “Okay, we’ve got to get in there. Any ideas?” He asked. 

“How about the front door?” Ron asked. 

Draco glared at him as he made his way to the front door and tugged on the handle. To his surprise, it opened with ease. “I really hate you, Weasley,”  he snarled. 

“D’aw! You’re just saying that because I can make better paper airplanes than you!”

They stepped into the main round room of the owlery. Draco’s heart dropped. All of the owls were tied by the leg to their branches and perches. They squawked and screamed to be free, but no one answered. He was so captivated by the sight of the prisoner owls, that he didn’t notice Ron making his way toward a door towards the back of the circle. 

“The birds,” Draco breathed. He pulled his wand out and pointed it at the ceiling. 

“No!” Ron hissed, forcing his arm down. “They’ll hear us. It’s too risky. He’s got to be in the back, right?” He asked. “I’ve never been back there before, I don’t know what’s there,” he said. 

Draco nodded. “Burrens’ office. I suppose they could be keeping him back there-” 

“Voices! I heard voices!” Someone shouted on the other side of the door in the back of the owlery. Draco and Ron glanced at eachother before darting forward and crouching in front of the long front desk. The door opened and a tall man with a mask over his face stepped out. “Who’s in here?” He asked. 

Ron stood up. “Erm, yes, hello there,” he said. Draco made a mental note to scoop his guts out with a rusty spoon. “Marius. Get up. I’m sorry, sir. My friend here dropped his wand. Your voice scared us!” Ron rambled. 

“Yes,” Draco said, standing up and glaring at him. “We were wondering if you had an owl that could deliver a package to our dear friend in… in Greenland.” 

“Owlrey’s closed. Can’t you two fools read? Sign says CLOSED!” The man thundered. 

“Actually, it says open. And the door’s unlocked,” Ron said. 

“It does no- wait a second!” The man focused on Draco’s face. Draco subtly held his wand at the ready behind the desk. “I recognize you! You’re that auror who was on the mountain!” He sputtered. 

“ _ Stupefy! _ ” Draco shouted. The man dropped to the floor with a deafening thud. The owls all screeched louder than before and flapped their wings. “Great, let’s hope he hasn’t got backup,” Draco muttered. “ _ Relashio! _ ” A jet of purple light burst from his wand and broke the owls free. They all crowded the ceiling, trying to find a way out. 

Ron groaned. “Malfoy! What are you thinking?” He shouted. “ _ Confringo! _ ” The glass dome ceiling shattered and the birds flew out in a massive cloud. “No more rescuing stupid birds. We’ve got to find Harry!” He shouted. 

“Right… Harry…” Draco muttered, his eyes still on the owls. 

“FREEZE!” The back door flew open and two more masked figures appeared. 

Ron was surprisingly quick to his feet, instantly his wand was pointed at the figure on the left. “ _ Expelliarmus! Stupefy! _ ” He shouted, sending them flying backward, hitting their head on the wooden door before collapsing to the ground.

Draco apparated to the other side of the room and grabbed the second person by the shoulder, pressing his wand to their neck. “Tell us where Harry Potter is _right now_ ,” he growled.   
“You aren’t going to curse me,” the person said, but their voice shook. 

Draco pressed his wand harder into their neck. “ _ Engorgio Skullus _ ,” he hissed. The person’s head began to grow and swell. “TELL US WHERE HARRY POTTER IS!” Draco roared. 

The person gasped and their hands flew to their head. “In that room over there! He’s being tortured!” They shouted. 

Draco dropped the person to the floor and they rushed to the room. “Wait,” he said, stopping Ron. “I’m going to call the Ministry for back up. Even if we have gotten rid of everyone here, we still have to find Cupperton.” He quickly pulled out his phone and tried to figure out how the hell you send a text message. 

There was a scream from behind the door. “NO! TEDDY!” Harry wailed. 

“Teddy!” Draco shouted. 

“Harry!” Ron yelled. 

They pulled the door open to find Harry and a cloaked figure with their faces submerged in some sort of fancy birdbath. 

“What the hell?” Draco spat. He paused and turned to Ron. “ _ What the hell _ ?” He said again. 

“It’s a pensive, I think,” Ron said. “I mean… I don’t know what else it could be. I’ve never really seen one, but Harry’s told me about it. It shows you memories or something.” 

“Memories- memories of Teddy? How do they have memories of-” Draco froze and watched Harry.

“Draco? Why are you showing me this?” Harry shouted. 

“He’s not talking to you,” Ron said. “He can’t hear us, I think. They must be showing him one of your memories.” 

“How did they get my memories?” Draco demanded. “We’ve got to get him out of it.” He seized the back of Harry’s shirt and yanked his face out of the birdba- pensive. The pensive. “Harry! Harry?” Draco asked. 

Harry still had a slightly dazed look on his face. He blinked several times before he realized what was going on. “Draco. Draco! You’re alright!” He said, grabbing his face and pressing his lips to Draco’s. “I’m so sorry, Draco, I’m sorry! For everything!” He said before kissing him again. 

“Okay as touching as this is, we have some death eater butt to kick,” Ron said, nodding toward the guy in the bir- PENSIVE. 

“Oh, hey, Ron!” Harry said, grinning at his best friend. 

“I see how it is. He gets a kiss and all I get is a ‘Hey, Ron’!” 

Draco sighed and rolled his eyes. “Now’s not the time. Harry, how’d they get Teddy’s memories?” He asked. 

Harry shook his head. “I don’t know. They had your memories too. It was the memory of Teddy f- finding Andromeda. And you talking to your mother after I- after we- after the Sectumsempra.  I don’t know how they got them. How’d you guys find me?” 

“Long story,” Draco said. “The Ministry will be here soon. Who is this person and where are Burren and Rosmerta? And how did they get mine and Teddy’s memories? Who else is here?” He asked. 

“Not sure,” Harry said, answering all of the questions Draco had asked. 

The person whose head was in the pensive suddenly stood up, but Ron, Harry, and Draco already had their wands drawn and pointing at them. 

“What have you done with our son?” Draco and Harry demanded at the same time. 

“N- nothing! I’m just supposed to torture Harry Potter!” The person blubbered. 

“Where’s Cupperton?” Harry asked. 

The person chuckled. “So stupid. I thought you were farther along on this mystery than you are!” They said. “Let’s me give you a clue. Delano Cupperton died in the war. He’s been dead for years.” And with that, they disapperated into thin air. The dark room was quiet as the men tried to process what had just happened. Harry’s mind kept flickering back to the images of Draco and Teddy crying and him being unable to comfort them. He was the one who caused Draco so much pain. It was his fault. And he would never be able to forgive himself. 

“What the  _ bloody hell is tHAT SUPPOSED TO MEAN _ ?” Ron roared. He sent red sparks at the pensive, causing it to crash to the floor and shatter. “‘He’s been dead for years’, you know, this shit is why I didn’t want to be an auror? GAH!” He screamed and had to pace the length of the room for a moment. “HARRY! WHY’D YOU MAKE ME LIKE THIS? HOW DO YOU MANAGE TO DO THESE THINGS? You know what you said after the war? You know what? You said, and I quote, ‘I’ve had enough trouble for a lifetime’. Well clearly you haven’t! Because here we are! And we’ve been chasing a  _ dead bloody death eater _ ! I’ve had it up to here with this shit, Harry! I was fine, you know? I have a little joke shop! I love making kids laugh! I’m engaged to the love of my life! It was all good! But you  _ had  _ to go and drag me into this ‘save the world’ shit again! Why can’t I just have PEACE?” He shouted, pacing some more. 

Harry sighed. “Are you done yet?” He asked. 

“One more thing. WHERE’S HERMIONE HOW ARE WE SUPPOSED TO DO THIS WITHOUT HER WE’RE DOOMED GAAAAAAAAH!” Ron screamed. He took a deep breath. “Okay, now I’m done.” 

Draco shook his head. “You’re in luck, Weasley. I guess the Minister ran out of paperwork to give to Granger, because they’re sending her,” he said, looking down at his phone. 

“Anyone else?” Harry asked. 

“It’s dragon trafficking season. All of the other aurors are in China trying to track down missing dragons. They really can’t spare anyone right now. Which would  be why the office has been so empty for the past few weeks,” Draco answered, tucking his phone away into his pocket. “Granger should be here in just a few sec-” 

He was cut off by the sound of a pop in the mainroom, followed by  “what in Merlin’s name happened here?”

“Hermione,” Ron said. His whole body relaxed. As long as Hermione was there, they’d be able to figure out what was going on. They went into the center room to greet her, where Draco explained to everyone the background of the Cupperton case that Glacia had dug up, as well as anything that would be helpful for Hermione to know. 

“‘He’s been dead for years’?” Hermione muttered. “Then who has been doing all of this stuff with the owls?” She asked. 

Draco bit his lip. “I have a suspicion, but I really don’t want to be right,” he said softly. “What are we going to do now? We’re right back where we started. No one else is here and we’re as lost as we were before we got here.”

“We’ve got to explore this place. Make sure no one is left hiding,” Hermione said. 

They split up to search for secret passages or any hidden rooms. Harry followed Draco into Burren’s office. “What do you think?” Harry asked, leaning on the desk in the center of the small room. 

Draco sighed and brushed the hair out of his face. “I don’t want to be right, Potter, I really,  _ really  _ don’t,” he said. 

“What do you think?” Harry asked again. 

“A couple months ago, my mother and I got word that my father was no longer in Azkaban,” Draco said. “Since dementors were very quick to change their loyalty during the war, they now use a mixture of dementors, giants, dragons, and basically anything they can ship off to a deserted island that sucks the joy out of you. It was unknown how he escaped or if he escaped at all. It’s quite possible that something got bored and just decided to eat him. Since that was most probable, the Ministry decided they didn’t want to worry about it. Even if he hadn’t been eaten, how could he get off the island?” He shook his head. “But my mother was worried. Whether she was worried he was still out there or she was worried about his well being, I don’t know. But she started asking questions. And they told her it had been ages since any wizard had checked the cells. They had such high security, no one bothered to see if anyone had escaped. He might have been gone for years.” 

Harry frowned. “And you think that-” 

“My father has been posing as Cupperton for years,” Draco finished. “Yes,” 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> HELLO!   
> Sorry I didn't post this week! I was super busy!  
> I have the week off, but I have driving school from 8 Am to 2 Pm everyday, so I'm not sure how often I'll be able to write.   
> I just broke up with my old Wattpad (lilytat). It was super emotional. My friend and I have been writing this Harry Potter fanfic on it since we were eleven (I turn 16 next month) so it was kind of a big deal for us to let go of it. It was SOOOOOO bad! Mine was a Ron Weasley x me fanfic and hers was Harry Potter x her and it was soooo bad. Neither of us knew how to write. They were all filler with four chapters of sudden plot at the end because we had to. But we spend 5 years of our lives writing those. It shows a lot. It shows were I've come from as a writer and where I've ended up.   
> I'm most heartbroken that my romance with Ron Weasley is over, but we had a good, long run. It hurts so much!! Is this what a breakup feels like? We never got to have our last kiss!   
> But this is my focus now.   
> So if you feel like throwing yourself out of a window or you need a good dare for truth-or-dare, go read 11 year old Lily's Ron Weasley fanfic.   
> I love you!   
> Lily


	21. Twenty One: A Better Father

“That wouldn’t explain the memories though, would it?” Harry asked. He pretended to be looking for a secret room or something just to keep himself from staring at the way his boyfriend's’ hair fell in his eyes, or the way he made no effort to cover up his tattoo, or his lovely eyes- 

“Sure, it would. He was there that night I was talking to my mother about the sectumsempra curse. I didn’t think he was in the room, but he was in the manor that night. And Teddy- you know how much bloodlines meant to my father. He probably heard of Teddy and decided to see if he was real or something and-” Draco gasped. He looked up at Harry. “Harry, do you think my father killed Andromeda Tonks?” 

Harry froze. “I- I don’t- no. He- she was old, right? And she had medical problems.” 

Draco shook his head. “But she was cured. And she was fit enough to take care of an excitable toddler, how could she have just passed away? Did anyone ever tell you what she die of?” He asked. 

“No. The only thing they told me was that she was dead and that we had to take care of Teddy together. What did they tell you?” 

“Heart attack. But I had never heard of a witch dying of heart attack before,” Draco mutteted. “He killed her.” 

Harry thought for a moment. “I suppose it makes sense. He wanted Teddy to grow up in a pure blooded family, didn’t he? So he must have figured that if Andromeda died, you’d get Teddy and he’d be raised as a pureblood, even though Lupin was a half-blood. I guess he didn’t notice that you’re significantly less of arsehole now.” 

“I’m offended.” 

“You know what I mean. But why everything else? Why Cupperton?” Harry asked. 

“Tons of people died in the war and their bodies were never recovered. Father must have known Cupperton died and stole a wad of his hair or something for polyjuice potions. He knew he needed a low tier Death Eater, so he wouldn’t be recognized. And he needed to be a Death Eater in order to gain his following. That would be why his family thought he was acting strange after the war- it wasn’t him. It was my father. And then he decided to do what he had set out to do the entire time- make sure pure blooded wizards were the only ones to survive,” Draco explained. They were no longer looking around, but watching each other. 

“But why the owls?” Harry asked. 

The door behind them creaked open. “Because everyone would suspect something if it had been snakes.” 

Draco’s blood turned cold at the sight. The man was tall and lean, like Draco. They had the same platinum hair, and the same dark eyes. The man looked like he had been through a lot. Scars ran up and down the sides of his face, along with deep purple bruises. Chunks of his shiny hair seemed to have fallen out. You could tell that he once was beautiful, but that had long ended. He was dressed in a long black robes that seemed to smother his body. All of his skin was covered from the tip of his neck to the bottom of his toe. Draco was sure it was because the rest of his body would be covered in the same purple bruises that painted his face. Living off of polyjuice potion couldn’t be that healthy.

“Father,” Draco snarled. 

“Draco,” the man said with a bitter smile. 

“The years haven’t been kind, I see,” Draco said. Harry saw the resemblance almost too much as the two men turned to face each other eye-to-eye. They stood like dancers, perfect posture and properly placed limbs. Had Draco been thirty years older, they could have been twins. But there was also a striking difference between them. There both equally cold with an evil aura to them, but Draco was different. There was a relaxed softness the way his hair lightly fell on his shoulders. There was comfort in his worn jeans. In his eye, there was goodness and justification. While in Lucius’ eye, there was only hatred. 

The older man scoffed. “The years haven’t been kind to  _ me _ ? Look at  _ you _ , Draco. You’re dressed as if you’re homeless. Your Dark Mark, your pride to the Dark Lord, has been smothered in… what are those?” 

“Narcissus flowers,” Draco grumbled, running his fingertips down his forearm. “Teddy chose the colors.” 

Lucius chuckled. “Narcissus flowers. For your mother, I suppose? Look at you, Draco. You’ve turned soft. Where is your dedication to your Lord? Where is your dedication to your family? I would have thought you were a muggle if I hadn’t known better! And what is this? You’re helping Potter, as if he is your  _ friend _ ?” He asked. 

Now, Draco chuckled. “Oh, father. Potter is so much more than that,” he said with a brilliant smirk. “I’m not the son you think I am anymore, father. I work with the Ministry of Magic to defeat pathetic beings like you. I’ve got a son, but you know about Teddy, don’t you, father?” He asked slyly. “I’ve got a son whom I love more than anything. And it’s my life’s goal to raise him better than you did me. I will be one hundred times the father you ever were. He will be proud of me. He will look up to me. He will think what I have done is right. Unlike you,” he said. 

Harry reached out and grabbed Draco’s hand. “And he’ll have my help. No matter what,” he said. 

Lucius took a step back. “I see what’s going on here. And I have to say, I’m not in the least bit surprised. Draco, I knew you’d be a disappointment to me in more ways than one.” 

“Just another reason I’ll be a better father than you,” Draco said. “Teddy can never disappoint me.” 

“Oh, to be so young and naive,” Lucius muttered. “Parenting isn’t that easy, my Draco,” he said.

“I know,” Draco said with another smirk. Harry did every he could not to grin. 

Lucius ran his fingers down the side of his wand and sighed heavily. “It’s a shame, really. My wand was broken in the war and this wand has never seemed to work the same for me. No matter, I’ll have to kill your little boyfriend with it anyway.” 

“Merlin’s beard, do you have to use that word?” Ron asked, appearing in the doorway behind Lucius with his wand drawn. “I mean, I’m cool with it. I support you or whatever. It’s just weird hearing Malfoy’s dad say it,” he added, looking guiltily at Harry and Draco. 

“Goodness, Ron. Just stun him already,” Hermione muttered, appearing next to her fiance. 

It was almost too easy. “ _ Stupefy! _ ” Ron said. Lucius fell to the ground at his fight. “Huh. I expected him to put up more of a fight, really,” he said. 

“Yes, well, his dueling days are long behind him. He’s getting too old for all of this,” Draco said, nudging his father with his toe. “Let’s get him back to the Ministry before he wakes up. This time, they’d better make sure he  _ stays  _ prisoner.” 

“We found Burren and Rosmerta,” Hermione said. “They were stuffed in some closet. They seemed to be pretty messed up, so I’ve already sent them to St. Mungo’s.” 

“Excellent,” Harry said. “Now, I believe we’ve got a son to get home to.” 

Draco suddenly remembered everything that had happened in the last 24 hours and hit Harry with all of his might. “THAT’S for going behind my back and telling the Ministry! You have no idea how scared I was, Potter! We went to my mother’s house and I couldn’t speak, I was too busy sobbing. I thought they were going to take my son, Potter! Do you have any idea how scary that is?” 

“Of course I do! He’s my son, too,” Harry said. “I’m sorry. But I suppose we were both wrong. I guess I was the one you loved all along.” 

Draco punched him again. And then one more time. For good luck. “It doesn’t matter, Potter. I don’t know if I can trust you anymore,” he said. “We agreed we wouldn’t tell anyone! For Teddy’s safety. You put my safety in jeopardy, whatever. You put Teddy’s safety in jeopardy and we have a problem, Potter.” 

“Draco. He. Is. My. Son. Too,” Harry said. 

“I hate to interrupt… but we’re just gunna… yeah,” Ron muttered as he and Hermione dragged Lucius away. 

Harry huffed and turned back to Draco. “Teddy is my son just as much as he is yours. And you took him away from me last night!” 

“We made a vow!” 

“TO DO WHAT’S BEST FOR TEDDY! I KNOW! I WAS THERE!” Harry shouted. “You know, sometimes I think you forget that I’m Teddy’s father, too. I was there when we made the vow, too. And I did do what was best for him! We couldn’t live our lives in hiding, Draco. We couldn’t spend every day of our lives in fear. And we couldn’t live another day with Teddy sleeping in bed with us. He takes up way too much space for someone who isn’t even three feet tall. I did what I thought was best for Teddy so we could stop living in fear. And I did the right thing! Look, now Cupperton- er… your father… has been captured and we don’t have to live in fear anymore!” 

Draco was silent for a few moments. He watched Harry’s face. His eyes begged for Draco to forgive him. For him to understand. “I do understand. But you betrayed my trust, Harry.” 

“You would’ve done the same.” 

“No. No, I don’t think I would have,” Draco said softly. They were quiet again. Maybe this problem would never be resolved. But maybe that was okay. “My mum got him a snake.” 

Harry sighed and grinned. “A snake  _ and  _ an owl? He’s going to have a petting zoo soon!” He said. “He’s so spoiled.” 

“He is our son,” Draco said. 

Harry leaned forward and pressed his forehead to Draco’s. “That, he certainly is,” he said. “And we are going to be the best damn fathers the world could ever give him.” 

“If we are going to be good fathers, shouldn’t we be spending our Sunday with him?” 

“Mhm,” Harry said, not moving. 

Draco smiled and took his hand. “Come on, Potter. Let’s go home.” 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> HIYA!  
> So this is kind of the last chapter. There IS an epilogue that I've already written but I'm going to wait at least one day before posting it.   
> Thank you so, so, so, so much for reading and commenting and leaving kudos and everything! This was my first AO3 story and it couldn't have gone any better.   
> I'm working on a Drarry one shot now and I think I'll be starting an 8th year Drarry fanfic soon, so keep your eyes open!   
> Thanks again guys!  
> Love you!   
> Lily


	22. EPILOGUE: Eight years later

“You’re telling me this isn’t magic?” Draco scoffed, closing the car door and picking up his daughter into his arms. The car ride to the train station had been an eventful one. For starters, James had discovered throwing shoes at the back of Aunt Hermy’s head while she was driving was the most amusing game in the world! And Lily, well, she was three and enjoyed screaming. For forty minutes straight. With no escape. 

“No! It’s just technology, Draco,” Hermione said. She was still rubbing the back of her head. “I can’t believe Harry hasn’t made you learn how to drive yet.” 

Draco shrugged. “I haven’t had the time. Being a stay-at-home Daddy is very time-consuming, isn’t it, darling?” He asked the little girl balanced on his hip. She giggled and clapped in response. “Where are your siblings? Merlin’s- Lyra! Scorpius! James!” He called. “This is a parking lot! It’s not funny, you’re going to be killed. What happens when you get squished by a car? You won’t get to go to Hogwarts if you’re a pancake!”

“Where’s Daddy?” A 7-year-old boy with black hair whined, appearing behind his father. 

“I told you, he’s already at the station with Teddy. Where are Lyra and Scorp?” Draco asked, spinning around. 

“I’ve got them,” Ron announced, walking over to the car with two five-year-old girls and a five-year-old boy holding his hands. Only one of which was his own. She was also the only one with clearly bright red hair, while the other two had hair so light, it could be white. “Have you got Hugo, Hermione?” Ron asked. 

“Yes,” Hermione said. “Goodness, we could start our own daycare, couldn’t we?” She asked, giggling at the large number of children who had gathered around the grey minivan. 

“I blame Draco and Harry. You just couldn’t stop with Teddy, could you?” Ron muttered. 

“Look how cute they are!” Draco said, shoving Lily into his face. She was blowing a bubble with her spit. “Come here Scorp, Lyra, hold onto Dad. You know, if Lyra had been a boy, Harry wanted to name her Albus. Then, the adoption center told us we were having a  _ girl _ and a boy instead of two boys, and we decided to go with my family’s tradition of star-themed names.” 

Ron groaned. “Yes, Draco, we know. That story isn’t nearly as interesting as you seem to think it is.” He had heard that story nearly a billion times. Also the one where they took James because no one else would and they felt something  _ special  _ about him. Ron loved James, but the only thing special about that bratty 7-year-old was how dangerous he was to be around. 

Draco chuckled. “I know. Just, can you imagine? A son called Albus? Goodness, that man had a terrible influence on Harry. But no, he had to have that name! So I got to name two and Harry got to name two. It worked out quite nicely, I think. James! Don’t do that to your brother!” He shouted as James attempted to climb onto Scorpius’ back and get a piggyback-ride to the train station platform.

“Come on, we’re going to be late and we aren’t going to get to see Teddy off,” Hermione said as they began to hurry toward the train station. 

They hurried through the swarms of people (which proved to be difficult with six children slowing them down) to the wall between platforms 9 and 10. Draco took Lily, Lyra, and Scorpius first. Then, Ron followed with Rose and James, and then Hermione with Hugo. They wandered through platform 9 ¾ before they finally found Harry Potter and his eldest son. 

“There you are!” Harry said once he saw them. He gave Draco a quick kiss on the lips. “You’re late.” 

“Yes, well, Lyra insisted on putting her shoes on by herself,” Draco muttered. “Which of course meant Scorpius had to try to do it better than she. And Hermione had to stop for gas on the way. Are Bill and Fleur here with Victoire?” He asked, looking around frantically. 

“DADDY!” Lily screamed, clapping her hands. 

Harry took her out of Draco’s arms and bounced her on his hip. “Yes, they’re around here somewhere. They went to go say ‘hi’ to someone Bill knew from school.” 

Draco bent down so he was eye-level with Teddy. “What do you think, Teddy bear? You ready for school?” He asked. 

Teddy laughed. “Dad! Stop calling me that!” He said. “I’m not a little kid anymore. I’m going to Hogwarts! Are- are you going to be angry with me if I’m not in Slytherin?” He asked. 

Draco grinned. “Not one bit, love. You’ll be in whatever house you’re meant to be in, and we’ll love you just the same!” He looked around to make sure the coast was clear. “But please make sure you’re in Hufflepuff, or I owe Uncle Ron twenty galleons. Don’t tell Daddy.” He said and ruffled his son’s hair. Teddy laughed and hugged his father. 

“Hey, me too!” Harry said, hugging Teddy with his one available arm. 

“You’ve hugged me like one thousand times!” Teddy shrieked. 

Harry grinned. “I just- I can’t believe- my little baby- our Teddy bear- is going to Hogwarts!” He said, fake sobbing. 

“No! Daddy no cry!” Lily said, hitting Harry in the face. 

“I’m going away to school, Lily,” Teddy told his little sister. “Are you going to miss me?” He asked.

“We will!” Lyra and Scorpius cried. They enveloped Teddy in a large hug that involved a lot of squeezing to see which of them could squeeze harder. 

“I want to go to Hogwarts!” James whined. 

Draco shook his head. “They’re not ready for you yet, monster. They need a few more years to prepare. They’re going to need all of the magic they can get before you get there,” he said, laughing. 

The Hogwarts express blew its whistling, signaling that it was time for the students to get on the train. Before Teddy knew it, he was being suffocated by his four brothers and sisters and his fathers in a giant Teddy bear hug. “Get off me! Get off me!” He giggled, wiggling around. 

Harry and Draco held his hands.  “Write to us every single day,” Draco ordered. 

“We’ll send you Lily’s diapers to update you on her potty training,” Harry said. 

Teddy rolled his eyes and began to make his way onto the train with Victoire. 

“Tell Neville we say ‘hi’!” 

“Tell us when you find the Room of Requirement!” 

“Make sure you’re eating enough!” 

“Be in Hufflepuff or I owe Uncle Ron twenty galleons!” 

“ _ You what _ ?” 

“I mean… get to class on time!” 

The train sped off into the tunnel and before they knew it, Harry and Draco were down to four kids. “He’ll be okay, won’t he?” Draco asked as they walked back to the parking lot. 

Harry laughed. “Of course he will! He’s our son, of course. All of his teachers are going to adore him, Neville especially. He’ll make tons of friends. I’m not worried about Teddy one bit. It’s James I’m worried about.” 

“That’s your fault. You named him James Sirius, what did you expect?” Draco chuckled. 

“I miss Teddy!” Lyra whined. 

“Me too!” Scorpius shouted. 

Lily began to yell just for the sake of being three and getting away with yelling for no reason. 

Harry simply laughed. “Best fathers there are,” he said and rested his head on Draco’s shoulder. 

“I wouldn’t have it any other way.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello hello!  
> So, this is the end.   
> Like the real end for realsies.   
> I'm going to post a one shot soon (that may or may not be about their proposal) and maybe a Drarry eighth year slow-burn fanfic and maybe a Teddy/Victoire slow burn. Let me know which you guys would prefer!  
> Thanks for reading!  
> Lily


End file.
